Drugs found in Thar that killed 2 in Delhi: Cocaine, LSD, charas seized; NDPS charges added

NEW DELHI: Police have seized LSD, cocaine and MDMA, besides charas and ganja, from the Mahindra Thar that mowed down two people on a footpath in Chanakyapuri on Sunday morning.The driver, identified as 26-year-old Ashish Bachchas, a resident of Shakarpur, had been arrested from the spot.

The accused was behind the wheel of the Ghaziabad-registered SUV when it swerved off the road near 11 Murti around 6.30am Sunday, smashing into a streetlight pole after hitting the victims.

Police said the accident was spotted by a patrolling team that rushed the victims to hospital. While one of them was declared dead on arrival, the other succumbed soon after. The SUV had sustained heavy frontal damage, with one of the tyres nearly falling out.

The driver had been unharmed.

Both the victims, believed to be homeless, were in their 30s. One was identified as Sujesh Kshetri, originally from Sikkim, while the other's identity is yet to be established.During an inspection of the vehicle, police officers discovered a bag containing a variety of narcotics packed in small packets. "The seized contraband included 0.3 gram of cocaine, 2.6 grams of LSD, 23.4 grams of methamphetamine, over 21.2 grams of ganja, over 4.2 grams of charas, and nearly 15.5 grams of tobacco, along with Rs 25,000 in cash and a mobile phone," a senior police officer said.

Police said that as per the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, the recovered narcotics fall under the commercial quantity category. The accused had earlier been booked under BNS sections related to rash driving and causing death by negligence. On Monday, sections 20, 21, 22 and 25 of NDPS Act were also added. TOI had reported that a liquor bottle was found from the vehicle. Police are now investigating the source of the drugs, and whether the accused was a drug peddler or part of a larger supply network. They are also probing if he had gone to Gurgaon for a party and was returning when the incident happened.