Maharashtra Bill to Include Drug Peddling in Organized Crime

• The Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) was amended to include drug peddling and narcotics-related offences.

• The bill was passed in the Maharashtra Legislative Council, nearly a week after it was cleared by the Assembly on July 9.

• The amendment will make it difficult for drug peddlers to obtain bail after arrest. Currently, those involved in drugs trade are booked under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, 1985.

• The MCOCA has stringent provisions, including extended detention periods, stricter bail conditions, and admissibility of confessions made to police officers.

• The government is considering lowering the legal age for defining ‘juvenile’ in drug-related cases to 16.

• The state government is also forming standard operating procedures to deport foreign nationals involved in drug-related cases.