From ganja to gold: Odisha Police trace ₹10 crore assets from two persons in backward district

Kandhamal police in Odisha went looking for Ganja, but appeared to have ended up stumbling upon small real-estate empires.

In a meticulously conducted financial probe, the police uncovered assets worth nearly ₹10 crore allegedly amassed by two men caught transporting ganja from the district. The properties, spread across two separate narcotics syndicates, have been frozen under provisions of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985.

“This action reflects a policy-driven shift from merely intercepting drugs to dismantling the economic ecosystem that sustains narcotic trafficking,” said Kandhamal Superintendent of Police Harisha B. C., underlining the new focus on following the money trail.

The financial investigation, however, revealed details that were as curious as they were startling.

One of the accused, Asish Kumar Digal of Kandhamal, had dutifully enrolled his modest roadside dhaba under the Income Tax Act — though the enthusiasm appeared to end there. According to investigators, Digal’s declared income was largely limited to the pension received by his widowed mother.

“He started the dhaba barely two years ago,” said a senior police officer, “but somehow managed to accumulate properties worth Rs. 5.10 crore. Of this, assets worth Rs. 4.59 crore have already been frozen.” The dhaba, it turns out, was doing far more business on paper than on the stove.

Digal had bought five pieces of land and two buildings without major known source of income. The second case was no less surprising. Dillip Kumar Goud, a resident of Ganjam district who has settled in Gujarat, was caught transporting ganja. When police traced his financial footprint, they were in for another shock: Goud had allegedly amassed assets worth ₹4.69 crore of income that investigators say appears to have flowed straight from the ganja trade.

“The freezing was undertaken after systematic financial profiling of accused and affected persons, scrutiny of bank accounts, transaction patterns, property documents, and asset ownership, establishing a clear ‘Reason to Believe’ that the frozen assets are linked to proceeds of narcotic trade,” said Subhrajit Biswal, Sub-Divisional Police Officer of Phulbani Sadar.

“Experience has shown that narcotic syndicates often survive arrests by continuing operations through accumulated wealth. Freezing of assets would help prevent illicit reinvestment, disrupts supply chains and recruitment, weaken the operational capacity of organised drug networks,” Ramendra Prasad, Additional Superintendent of Police.

According to Kandhamal SP Mr. Harisha, the operation involved close coordination with revenue authorities, tax departments, banks and financial institutions, reflecting a technology-enabled and intelligence-led policing approach.  “Such cooperation is vital in tracing layered and concealed money trails,” he said.