Amit Shah warns drug traffickers after Virender Basoya brought back from UAE

Union Home Minister Amit Shah welcomed the return of alleged drug kingpin Virender Singh Basoya from the UAE, calling it a major success in the government’s zero-tolerance narcotics policy. Basoya, wanted in a Pune drug case, was deported following an NCB-led operation

New Delhi: Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday hailed the return of alleged drug kingpin Virender Singh Basoya from the United Arab Emirates, calling it a major milestone in the government’s “zero tolerance” policy against narcotics.

In a post on X, Shah said the Narendra Modi government was relentlessly pursuing drug traffickers operating from abroad and dismantling their networks. “Modi govt is relentlessly tracking down drug traffickers hiding abroad and destroying their entire ecosystem with a ruthless approach,” Shah said.

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“Creating a new milestone in the policy of zero tolerance against narcotics, the NCB secured the return of fugitive drug kingpin Virender Singh Basoya from the UAE,” he added.

According to the initial background shared in connection with the case, Basoya was brought to India from Dubai on Air India flight number 4310 following efforts by Indian authorities. Basoya is an accused in the Pune drug case involving narcotics allegedly worth Rs 6,000 crore.

The Narcotics Control Bureau had issued a Red Corner Notice against him, and he was subsequently arrested in Dubai. He was deported to India following an initiative by the Government of India, marking what authorities described as a significant success in the country’s ongoing crackdown on international drug trafficking networks.

Basoya is considered close to Sandeep Dhunia, who is described as the main accused in a Delhi Police drug case involving narcotics worth around Rs 13,000 crore. Dhunia, according to the information provided, managed to travel from Dubai to Pakistan.

Shah said Indian agencies had tracked Basoya by following the criminal network at multiple levels. “By tracing the criminal through a top-to-bottom and bottom-to-top approach, our agencies have once again proven that no matter where drug traffickers hide, they cannot escape the long arm of Indian law,” the Home Minister said.

The development is being seen as a major success for the NCB and other agencies involved in pursuing fugitives accused of operating large-scale narcotics networks from overseas. The government has repeatedly maintained that its anti-drug strategy focuses not only on individual traffickers but also on dismantling the wider financial, logistical and criminal ecosystem supporting narcotics syndicates.