An operation across Assam, Mizoram and Manipur has led to 18 arrests and the freezing of 1,424 bank accounts, according to an announcement by Union Home Minister Amit Shah. The action targeted an alleged international narcotics network and its financial arrangements, bringing the money trail into focus alongside the movement of drugs.
The raids took place on October 23, while the results were announced on October 25. That difference matters: this is a report of a newly announced enforcement operation, not a claim that all the searches happened on the day the announcement appeared.
A coordinated operation across the Northeast
Officials described simultaneous action at 38 locations across the three states. The operation, called Trident, involved central agencies and state police. The Narcotics Control Bureau’s role was accompanied by financial investigations involving the Enforcement Directorate.
The government says the network extended across India, Myanmar and Bangladesh. That account describes the alleged reach of the organisation being investigated; it does not establish that every suspect or every account had a connection to each country.
Shah said the operation had exposed hawala transactions worth approximately ₹100 crore. Reporting also linked the investigation to a Myanmar-based alleged drug-network leader arrested earlier in the year. The claims remain part of the enforcement agencies’ case and will require support through the legal process.
Why the financial figures need to be read separately
Reports of the operation list several different measures: arrests, frozen bank accounts, attached property and suspected transactions. They should not be added together or treated as different descriptions of one recovered sum.
The 1,424 figure refers to accounts frozen. It does not mean that 1,424 people have been convicted or even that each account represents a different person. Likewise, the reported ₹100 crore in transactions is an alleged money flow, not an announcement that investigators found that amount in cash.
Officials also reported properties valued at ₹17.82 crore being attached. Attachment places restrictions on assets during the relevant proceedings; it should not be described as a final judicial conclusion that the property must be permanently forfeited.
Separate coverage of the Enforcement Directorate’s work referred to six arrests. That figure should not be added automatically to the overall total of 18 announced for the coordinated operation. Agency-specific figures may cover a subset of the wider action.
