03 January,2018 08:06 PM IST | Mumbai | Suraj Ojha
Foreign nationals held for peddling drugs throw fits if cops don't give them chicken fried rice; Nigerian dealer recently held needs four plates per day
If the peddlers aren't fed meals with chicken, ANC officials claim, they give them nightmares by either going on a hunger strike or causing serious harm to themselves. Illustration/Uday Mohite
The city's Anti-Narcotics Cell (ANC) is 'chicken'ing out when it comes to treatment of its drug-dealing detainees and their meals, especially when not doing so would invite a hunger strike from them. In 2017, ANC spent Rs 63,000 to feed chicken fried rice to 33 Nigerian drug peddlers.
Chickening in
If the peddlers aren't fed meals with chicken, ANC officers claim, they give them nightmares by either not eating or causing serious harm to themselves. This practice has continued in 2018 too, with the January 1 arrest of dealer Okoro Ogdu Onyeka, who was held with 120 g cocaine worth Rs 6 lakh from Lokhandwala. After Onyeka went on hunger strike, refusing to drink even a drop of water till he got chicken in his meals behind bars, cops had to give in and feed him chicken fried rice. According to the ANC sources, Onyeka needs two full plates of chicken fried rice per meal. However, despite being fed properly, he refuses to give information about the drug stash found on him.
Shivdeep Lande, deputy commissioner of police, ANC, told mid-day, "We produced the accused before court, which remanded him in police custody till January 6. In our initial investigation, we did not find any criminal record. He's refusing to reveal from where he bought the drugs. But we are investigating further into it."
Need the meat
ANC always faces several problems after arresting foreign nationals, because when they are in police custody they do not eat vegetarian food and demand chicken fried rice twice a day. Most of them eat two plates at a time. ANC sources said they have to pay Rs 90 per plate of chicken fried rice, but some of the accused eat two or three plates in a day. As per the rule, cops get Rs 100 to feed a single accused per day, but ANC ends up spending Rs 270 in a day for their meals.
Last year, ANC arrested 33 Nigerians. With every arrest, they had to demand at least a week's custody, which entailed arranging more than 14 meals per accused. Most of the arrested accused are drug addicts themselves, and thus, end up either demanding good food of their daily dose of drugs. If their wishes aren't fulfilled, they tend to harm themselves, so the cops give in to their demands.
33
Number of Nigerian drug peddlers held by ANC in 2017
Rs 90
Cost per plate of chicken fried rice fed to the inmates
Rs 270
Amount spent feeding one inmate chicken fried rice per day
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