Ahmedabad traffic cop held after name surfaces in drug racket

In yet another embarrassment for the city police, a traffic constable was arrested after his alleged involvement surfaced in a narcotics racket busted by the Special Operations Group (SOG) last week.

According to police sources, the SOG had earlier arrested an accused with 500 grams of high-grade, or 'hybrid' ganja from Nikol and had arrested two accused. During interrogation, the accused revealed that the contraband had been supplied by a police constable identified as Sahdev Singh Govindsingh Chauhan, who is attached to the city’s State Traffic Police department.

Following this revelation, the SOG initiated an internal probe and subsequently placed Sahdev Singh under arrest. He is accused of supplying the seized ganja to peddlers and facilitating its distribution within the city.

Officials said that the latest arrest has once again brought to light the nexus between certain police personnel and the illicit drug trade. “This case exposes how some individuals within the force are misusing their position to aid criminal networks,” a senior officer said, adding that further investigation is underway to trace other possible links in the chain.

The SOG is also probing whether the accused constable was involved in other illegal activities, including past bootlegging and smuggling incidents.

The police have booked the constable under relevant sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act. He is likely to be suspended pending departmental inquiry.

Senior officers said the department would take strict disciplinary action once the investigation report is submitted.

Investigators have found that Sahdev Singh, who joined the city traffic police force in 2007, may have sourced the contraband from Thailand, as his passport shows recent travel entries to the country. Police suspect that the hybrid strain of ganja seized in Ahmedabad was brought through international routes.

According to officials, the SOG had, a few days ago, intercepted two men — Pratik Kumawat and Ravi Patel — from Dharnidhar Estate in Rakhial, and seized 500 grams of high-grade hybrid ganja worth nearly ₹50 lakh. During interrogation, both men allegedly revealed that the consignment was supplied by a serving police officer.

When confronted, the accused reportedly named Traffic Constable Sahdev Singh, who was then attached to the State Traffic department’s interceptor van unit, responsible for patrolling the city’s highways.

Preliminary investigation suggests that Singh may have used his foreign trip as a cover to procure hybrid ganja, a potent cannabis strain popular in Southeast Asia, and supplied it locally through intermediaries.

SOG officials said Chauhan, a native of Bhalod village in Dholka taluka, has been living in Amrut Park Society, Nikol, and was arrested after his name surfaced during the custodial questioning of the two accused.