A Pune court on Sunday placed alleged drug kingpin Virender Singh Basoya, who was recently extradited from the UAE, in NCB custody until August 21.
On Friday, a Delhi court granted the Narcotics Control Bureau’s (NCB) request for a three-day transit remand of Basoya, who is accused in a multi-crore drug seizure case, to facilitate his production before a Pune court.
On Sunday, Basoya was brought before a Pune court amid tight police security.
Prosecutors informed the court that the accused had spent an extended period overseas. His name has appeared in multiple drug-related investigations, and authorities suspect he may be a central figure in a large-scale drug trafficking network.
The prosecution stressed that the distribution of narcotic substances is a grave crime, noting that approximately 9,000 kg of mephedrone had been confiscated in operations conducted by the NCB and the police.
The Pune Police had also seized a large quantity of drugs during operations in Vishrantwadi (Pune) and Delhi.
This case involves multiple accused, and Basoya needs to be interrogated about the roles of all the other accused persons.
The prosecution indicated that the search for the remaining accused is still in progress and sought six days of NCB custody for Basoya. Basoya’s lawyer, however, contended that his client ought to be kept in NCB custody. for only four days.
After hearing both sides, the court remanded Basoya to NCB’s custody till August 21.
Basoya’s name emerged in connection with a 2024 seizure in Pune of 500 grams of mephedrone, a synthetic stimulant widely known on the streets as “meow meow.”
The investigation was subsequently broadened to uncover and dismantle the entire drug trafficking network, leading to the seizure of about 867 kg of mephedrone in Pune and 970 kg in Delhi, bringing the total quantity recovered to roughly 1,837 kg.
The NCB’s Mumbai unit assumed control of the investigation and identified Basoya as the suspected mastermind, accused of directing the syndicate’s operations from abroad and orchestrating the smuggling of mephedrone consignments from India to other nations.
His name was also mentioned in another case handled by the Delhi Police Special Cell, which involved international cocaine smuggling.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah said on Friday that the NCB facilitated Basoya’s return from the UAE, marking a "new milestone" in the government’s zero-tolerance policy towards narcotics.
NCB Deputy Director General (Operations) Neeraj Gupta stated that Basoya fled to Dubai in 2024, just one day after the Pune police filed a case against him.
Basoya is a “big kingpin” of the drug trafficking network against whom an Interpol Red Notice was issued in November 2025, Gupta added.