Two Odisha men held with ganja worth Rs 16 lakh in Thane

Police in Thane district, Maharashtra, apprehended two individuals from Odisha and seized 37.39 kg of ganja valued at Rs 16.68 lakh from them, according to an official statement released on Monday.

On the evening of March 1, a crime branch team set up a trap outside a roadside cafe along the Anjurphata-Vasai route in the Bhiwandi area after receiving a tip, reported news agency PTI. 

According to the report, when the police stopped the two suspects at the spot, they searched them and discovered the contraband they were carrying. The individuals, Rajkishore Dhootkrishna Behra (31) and Sagar Surendra Nayak (29) were then arrested.

According to an official statement from the Bhoiwada police station, both persons have been charged with violating the terms of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, the report added. 

In another unrelated incident, Navi Mumbai Police is looking for a man who allegedly assaulted a cop. According to a PTI report, the unidentified man punched a police inspector near a Navi Mumbai bank while being questioned about his suspicious behaviour. He has now been charged with the crime, officials said on Monday.

The incident occurred on Sunday at around 3:30 am in the Koparkhairne neighbourhood. According to PTI, a police squad on night patrol noticed the man acting strangely close to a motorbike that was parked near a bank.

According to the news agency report, the man allegedly pulled a sickle out of his rucksack when the inspector approached him to question him about his behaviour, which prompted the police to step in. The report also stated that the accused attacked an inspector during the altercation, leaving minor injuries in their wake, then fled the scene into the night.

According to the PTI report, a First Information source (FIR) has been filed against the attacker under the relevant provisions of the Arms Act, as well as sections 353 (attack on a public worker in the course of duty) and 332 (voluntarily causing hurt to a public official) of the Indian Penal Code.

Police have started a manhunt to apprehend the individual who attacked the police inspector.