Durg, March 7 A BJP Kisan Morcha leader and two others were arrested on Saturday for allegedly cultivating opium worth Rs 8 crore in a maize field in Chhattisgarh's Durg district, a police official said.
Durg Superintendent of Police Vijay Agrawal identified the accused as Vinayak Tamrakar, the state coordinator of the Rice Mill Processing Project of the BJP Kisan Morcha here, as well as Vikas Bishnoi (27) and Manish Thakur (45).
The illegal cultivation was detected on farmland located between Samoda, Jhenjhari and Sirsa villages under the jurisdiction of the Pulgaon police station and the Jeora-Sirsa police outpost, he said.
An inspection this morning revealed opium plants interspersed with maize crops, apparently grown to conceal the illegal plantation spread over 5.62 acres in the middle of a 7-acre plot, police said.
Officials added that the land is owned by Madhumati Tamrakar and Pritibala Tamrakar, while the agricultural work is managed by Vinayak Tamrakar.
Durg Additional Tehsildar Kshama Yadav stated that an investigation is underway to ascertain how the opium crop was cultivated on the farm.
Additional Superintendent of Police Manishanker Chandra said a case has been registered under the NDPS Act.
A preliminary investigation has shown that individuals from outside the state were brought in for opium cultivation, police said.
Meanwhile, Chhattisgarh BJP president Kiran Singh Deo said Vinayak Tamrakar had been suspended with immediate effect for tarnishing the party's image.
Former chief minister Bhupesh Baghel alleged that Vinayak Tamrakar was cultivating opium on nearly 10 acres of land in Samoda village.
The former chief minister alleged Tamrakar is an influential person who interacts with senior officials and ministers.
Tamrakar had earlier denied the allegations and claimed the case was politically motivated.
