Special NDPS Court Sentences Six to 20 Years in Oshiwara Mephedrone Factory Case
A special NDPS court has sentenced six accused to 20 years of imprisonment and imposed heavy fines after finding them guilty of running an illicit Mephedrone (MD) manufacturing unit inside a flat in Oshiwara. Special judge Shudhirkumar Murlidharrao Bukke convicted the six men following a trial stemming from an Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) raid conducted in June 2015.
The convicted individuals were identified as Sachin Dilip Bagul, Sajid Yusuf Electricwala, Chandrakant Krushna Katade, Rahul Ramesh Salunke, Ayub Tafsir Khan alias Lala, and Bhanudas More alias Bhavesh Patel. The ATS had recovered 150 kg of MD in finished and unfinished forms during the operation, alongside 100 litres of chemicals used in the drug's preparation.
According to the prosecution, ATS officers first intercepted Bagul near Hotel Shreeji in Oshiwara on June 29, 2015, seizing 1 kg of MD. Based on his interrogation, investigators raided a flat at Ekdant Building in Oshiwara, where Electricwala and other accused were actively producing drugs from various chemical compounds. The raid yielded 25.50 kg of finished MD and 25 kg of unfinished MD.
During the proceedings, Special Public Prosecutor Avdhut Chimalkar sought enhanced penalties under Section 31 of the NDPS Act against Electricwala and More, noting that More was recently convicted by a special court in Thane for operating a drug factory in Panvel. The prosecution also noted that Electricwala had previously been kidnapped by underworld associates over an undelivered drug consignment while out on bail. The court declined to invoke enhanced repeat-offender charges, stating it was imposing the minimum prescribed term under the primary charges.
Defence advocates and family members appealed for leniency, pointing out that several accused are young and have minor children. The court rejected these pleas, observing that drug trafficking harms society and students across colleges. The judge remarked that while murder harms a single individual, drug trafficking constitutes an offence against the public at large.
The court noted the operation was systematically organized under the guise of running a factory to produce malaria medicine. The accused used Ankaleshwar Research and Analytical Infrastructure Ltd, a laboratory in Gujarat, to test pilot batches and receive training.
The court identified Ayub Tafsir Khan alias Lala as the kingpin who provided over Rs 69 lakh in financing to set up the facility. More, a chemical engineer, was found guilty of procuring essential precursor chemicals, including methanol.
