Kolhapur police have arrested two individuals in connection with the possession of methamphetamine and hydroponically produced ganja, valued at approximately Rs 10 lakh.
The arrested accused are Shahid Ibrahim Mokashi (21), a resident of Ainapur in Gadhinglaj tehsil, and Abrahim Jockey Gonsalves (23), who resides in Kolhapur on rent at Mukt Sainik Vasahat.
Police apprehended the duo near a well-known management college in Kolhapur city, suspecting that they were attempting to sell the drugs to students. Authorities recovered 33.540 grams of MD drug and 31.31 grams of hydroponic ganja.
Assistant Police Inspector Sachin Chandan said, “This is the first time we have encountered the possession and attempted sale of hydroponic ganja, also called artificial ganja, prepared in a controlled environment. One kilogram of it costs about Rs 1 crore.”
Gonsalves works in the event management sector, and police said the two became acquainted through prior drug transactions. Both were presented before the Kolhapur Court, which granted four days of custody for further investigation. Officials added that they aim to trace the forward and backward linkages of the drug trade.
The police noted that both suspects were allegedly targeting college students for their illicit sales. This follows earlier actions by the Kolhapur police, including the June 2025 arrest of eight individuals from Kolhapur, Sangli, Satara, and Solapur for ganja smuggling, and a recent seizure of 835g of methamphetamine from Manish Nagori, a criminal-on-record involved in firearms trade.
