Bhubaneswar, Feb 11 (IANS) A local court in Bhubaneswar on Wednesday sentenced a drug peddler to 10 years’ rigorous imprisonment after finding him guilty of involvement in the illegal drug trade under the provisions of the NDPS Act.

The 31-year-old convict, identified as Prakash Sethy alias Pappu of Keonjhar district, has also been directed to pay a fine of Rs 1 lakh. In case of failure to pay the fine amount, he will have to undergo an additional one-year term of imprisonment.

“On May 21, 2025, while the accused was allegedly trading in contraband brown sugar on the Hi-tech–Bankuala road under Badagada Police Station limits in Bhubaneswar, a team of the Special Task Force of the Odisha Crime Branch apprehended Sethy. During the search, contraband brown sugar weighing 330 grams was recovered from his possession,” said Special Public Prosecutor Rashmiranjan Brahma.

Sources claimed that the convict had procured the brown sugar from Balasore and was on his way to deliver the contraband substance to local drug peddlers in Bhubaneswar on May 21 last year.

The State Forensic Science Laboratory, following chemical examination, confirmed that the seized contraband substance was brown sugar (diacetylmorphine/heroin).

After a detailed and sustained investigation, a chargesheet was submitted against the accused under Section 21(c) of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985.

After examining the statements of nine prosecution witnesses and perusing 32 exhibits placed on record, the court pronounced its judgment, convicting Sethy of the offence.

According to STF sources, this is the first case in Odisha in which an accused person has been convicted within two months of the framing of charges.

It is pertinent to mention that another drug peddler, Ashok Kumar Behera of Balasore, was awarded 10 years’ imprisonment by a court in Bhubaneswar last month in a separate case.

In that case, on November 7, 2021, the accused was allegedly found trading in contraband brown sugar weighing over 1 kg at Nayabazar in Balasore after procuring the substance from the Jaleswar area of the district.

–IANS

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