Idukki: Excise officials here arrested RG Wayanadan, alias Ranith Gopinath, a film makeup artist known for popular films like 'Aavesham', for possession of hybrid ganja. Officials confiscated 45 grams of ganja from him during a vehicle inspection on Vagamon Road in the early hours of Sunday.

Gopinath was apprehended while he was on his way to the shooting location of an upcoming movie in Vagamon. The excise team from Moolamattam carried out the inspection as part Operation Clean State.

Following his arrest, Kochi excise team raided Gopinath’s house in Kochi and his studio at Panampilly Nagar. Manorama News reported that the officials recovered ganja seed and stem from the studio. Manorama News reported that the excise officials recovered evidence of drug abuse from his residence. 

Kerala police and excise officials have launched an intensified crackdown on drug trafficking in the state in view of the alarming rise in criminal cases.

In Kochi, city police arrested 300 individuals on charges of drug trafficking and drug abuse during a raid on Saturday night. The operation, named Operation Midnight, was conducted from 11 pm to 2 am. Police seized ganja, MDMA, and hashish oil from multiple locations across the city and registered 77 cases under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act of 1985.