Top minister's son arrested in Manipur drugs haul case

Imphal : The widening police investigation into Sunday’s drug haul in Manipur reached the family of a prominent Congress politician on Tuesday. S Haokip, son of former state tourism minister T N Haokip, was arrested from his residence after raids the previous night unearthed drugs worth Rs 2-3 lakh, police said.

Manipur DGP Y Joykumar Singh told The Indian Express on Tuesday that one of the three vehicles — a Tata Safari — from which drugs were seized on Sunday, belongs to Haokip’s wife. The vehicle was found stacked with pseudoephedrine, which is used in the manufacture of heroin.

Army Colonel Ajay Choudhury, posted as defence PRO in Imphal, was arrested with five others for allegedly ferrying drugs to the Myanmar border. The haul is expected to be worth Rs 15-30 crore in the international market.

S Haokip, 30, was rounded up as a suspect after the arrested men named him, DGP Singh said. He has been remanded in police custody.

T N Haokip, a prominent Kuki leader, is CM Okram Ibobi Singh’s choice to be the next president of the Manipur state Congress, sources said.