As the Enforcement Directorate (ED) Friday carried out multiple raids as part of its money laundering probe into an illegal codeine-based cough syrup racket, one location stood out — the lavish mansion in Lucknow where a dismissed constable lived.
The constable, Alok Pratap Singh, was arrested in Lucknow over a week ago. He is lodged in Lucknow jail and is in police remand for 55 hours.
ED officials arrived at the sprawling residence — spread over nearly 7,000 square feet — in Ahmamau near the Lucknow-Sultanpur highway, under the jurisdiction of Gold City police station, and conducted a search.
Officials were at the house for nearly five hours. While the agency has not officially disclosed what it recovered, sources said the team seized several documents and electronic devices.
A senior police officer said Alok had been living in the house with his family for sometime. Painted a light cream, the two-storey palatial structure is a few kilometres from the upscale Gomti Nagar Extension.
It sports tall columns, ornate railings, and a wide balcony on the upper floor. On the ground floor, tall windows framed by vintage-style lamp lights open up to a wide porch. On the right side is a covered parking area where a motorcycle is parked, and a spiral staircase going to the upper floor. Outside is an equally ornate gate, with a row of plants.
According to the ED sources, it is visible that crores of rupees have been spent on the construction of the property. Sources said the agency has engaged a government-approved property valuer to assess the accurate cost of buying and constructing the house besides money spent on the luxurious interior work. The valuation will help to identify the quantum of illegal funds utilised in this property.
Story continues below this ad
However, sources said, preliminary inquiry suggests that the construction cost alone is around Rs 5 crore, which excludes the land value.
Role in the syndicate
On December 2, the UP Police Special Task Force (STF), which is probing one of the cases linked to the syrup scam, had arrested Alok a short distance from his home.
According to the police, he was part of the illegal network and allegedly operated two wholesale drug units — one in Uttar Pradesh and the other in Jharkhand — in coordination with others linked to the syndicate.
His alleged role in the racket emerged during the questioning of another accused, Amit Kumar Singh alias Amit Tata, who had been arrested in Lucknow on November 27.
Story continues below this ad
While the UP police is probing the case, the ED also lodged a complaint and began investigation.
‘Arrested in 2006, dismissed twice’
Hailing from Chandauli in UP, Alok is no stranger to controversy.
Police said his first brush with crime was in 2006, when he was posted with the Special Operations Group (SOG) in Lucknow. That year, in September, he was arrested along with six others — including four fellow policemen — for allegedly looting 4 kg of gold from an employee of a Prayagraj-based businessman.
Alok was dismissed from service following his involvement in this case. He and the other accused were later acquitted by a court due to lack of evidence, and he was reinstated in the police force in compliance with the court’s order.
Story continues below this ad
After rejoining, sources said, fresh allegations surfaced against him regarding dereliction of duty. In several instances, his name allegedly cropped up in complaints of misconduct, including allegations of assaulting people. Based on these charges, he was dismissed from service for the second time in 2019.
After this, sources said, Alok allegedly moved into the contract business and was often seen in the company of politically connected and influential persons. Sources said a few photographs of him with a former BSP MP also surfaced, adding to the speculation around his growing network.
The big picture
It was in February last year that the UP government constituted a joint investigation team comprising the Special Task Force (STF) and the Uttar Pradesh Food Safety & Drug Administration Department (FSDA) to probe allegations that cough syrup and other codeine-based medicines were being illegally stored, traded as intoxicants, and smuggled within UP, to states such as Uttarakhand, Bihar, Jharkhand, Assam, West Bengal, as well as across the border to Bangladesh and Nepal.
So far, a total of 128 FIRs have been registered across 31 districts in UP, and 32 people have been arrested. The prime accused, Shubham Jaiswal, is believed to have fled to Dubai with his family, police said. His father, Bhola Jaiswal, was arrested earlier this month.
Story continues below this ad
A three-member Special Investigation Team (SIT), headed by an Inspector General-rank officer, was appointed to probe the illegal storage, sale, and trafficking of codeine-based cough syrups and other narcotic medicines. In total, police have so far seized nearly 3.5 lakh bottles of codeine syrup, worth around Rs 4.5 crore in the market.
