Chennai: As many as 68 Indians, including six women, arrested for drug trafficking, are languishing in various jails across Malaysia, a well-known narcotic traffic hub frequented by Indian smugglers, like Colombo is.
The death penalty awarded to five Indians involved in narcotics trafficking by a Sri Lankan court had triggered violent protest in Tamil Nadu last week. Of the 68 arrested in Malaysia since 2008, 24 of them have been convicted.
“Chennai – Kuala Lumpur has been a busy drug route for some time now. It is true that there is an increase in trafficking,” a senior NCB official disclosed on Tuesday. Of the 68 arrested in the last six years, 45 were arrested in 2014 till September 1.
A close look at the list of Indians arrested in Malaysia for drug trafficking provided by the Indian high commission in Kuala Lumpur as an RTI reply, shows that a good number of people detained in Malaysia are of Tamil Nadu origin.
Internationally, laws against drug trafficking are in general harsh. “In the Gulf countries, the laws are very harsh. All other countries, including Malaysia and Sri Lanka are harsh. The laws are framed as per UN guidelines. Despite all these stringent laws, drug trafficking has gone up,” the official added.
In many countries, the conviction depends on the quantity and kind of narcotics the smugglers carry, the officer added. As many as 32 countries, including Malaysia, US and Sri Lanka, can give capital punishment depending on the quantity and number of convictions.
In September this year, a 27-year-old, Indian-origin Malaysian national was sentenced to death by a court in that country for trying to smuggle 22 kg diamorphine, a pure form of heroin, into Singapore in 2012.
Six people with narcotics in their possession had travelled from India to Malaysia during August 14-15 this year when security and checking were at a peak because of high alert in connection with Independence day celebrations.
