Karnataka minister's aide arrested for drug possession
Lingaraj Kanni, who's known as a close aide to Karnataka IT Minister Priyank Kharge and heads the Kalaburagi South Block Congress, was arrested in Thane, Maharashtra.
Police say he was caught trying to sell 120 bottles of banned codeine syrup after getting tipped off about his alleged involvement in drug trafficking.
Kanni linked to another Karnataka MLA
Kanni has been booked under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act. He's also linked to another MLA from Karnataka, which is raising eyebrows about political connections in these cases.
This isn't the first time Kharge's aides have made headlines—last December, another aide was arrested over a contractor's suicide note and even accused of plotting against a BJP MLA.
Earlier this year, an aide to a different Congress MLA was murdered in Bangalore. With investigations still underway, there are growing calls for accountability around political circles in Karnataka.