Hyderabad doctor caught red-handed buying cocaine worth ₹5 lakh, has Mumbai link: ‘Got addicted while pursuing MBA’

A top Hyderabad doctor was arrested on May 9 after she was allegedly caught red-handed buying cocaine worth ₹5 lakh. Police reportedly said the doctor was caught receiving 53 grams of the drug from a delivery person.

She was arrested along with a Mumbai-based delivery agent identified as Balakrishna Rampyar Ram. A case was registered and further investigation was on.

"Two people, including a 34-year-old female doctor, were taken into custody in Hyderabad after 53 grams of cocaine was seized from their possession," police were quoted by news agency PTI as saying.

According to the report, a team of police apprehended the doctor and the man (delivery person) when he handed over a packet containing cocaine to her in her car near a restaurant in Hyderabad on May 8.

The accused were sent to judicial remand on Friday. However, the kingpin of the interstate drug network is reportedly absconding.

Who was this Hyderabad doctor?

The doctor arrested in the case was Dr Namrata Chigurupati, a 34-year-old physician in Hyderabad, the Times of India reported.

The doctor reportedly told police officials that she developed a cocaine addiction while pursuing an MBA in Spain between 2021 and 2022.

As per the report, Dr Namrata Chigurupati had completed her MBBS from a college in Peeramcheruvu in 2014 and an MD in radiation oncology from a Kochi institution in 2017.

Doctor ordered drugs from Mumbai-based supplier

The woman, who was allegedly addicted to drugs, was procuring cocaine from the Mumbai-based person. A police official at Raidurgam police station said the woman doctor ordered the drug from a person (supplier) from Mumbai for which she had paid ₹5 lakh on May 4.

According to reports, the doctor admitted to continuing her cocaine use after returning to India, initially sourcing it through a local DJ, who was a friend's boyfriend, before establishing contact with one Vansh Thakkar.

Meanwhile, Balakrishna also confessed to working as a courier for Thakkar, transporting drugs across states for commission.

"On May 4, the doctor handed over ₹5 lakh in cash to Balakrishna in Hyderabad on Thakkar's instructions. Balakrishna handed over the cash to Thakkar in Mumbai and, on his instructions, brought a consignment of cocaine to Hyderabad on May 8," a Raidurgam police officer was quoted by TOI as saying.

"When he handed over the contraband to the doctor while sitting in her Mini Cooper on the evening of May 8, after receiving an additional ₹10,000, we arrested them," the official added.

"The doctor has been procuring cocaine from Thakkar for about a year. She buys the contraband on a monthly basis. She receives instructions from Thakkar on WhatsApp about the delivery location and time. He had turned on disappearing messages," police said.

Police are still searching for the alleged kingpin, Thakkar. The accused have been booked under Sections 8(c) and 22(b) of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act.