Jagdish Bhola

Jagdish Bhola is a former sportsperson and allegedly a drug smuggler. He was well known as "king kong" of Indian wrestling and had earned Arjuna Award during his wrestling career.

Early life

Bhola was born in the Malwa plateau region of Punjab and spent his childhood there. Sources alleged that when Bhola was a child two of his uncles were linked to illegal drug smuggling business. Both of them later committed suicide. He later shifted to Ludhiana to master skills in wrestling. He joined an akhara run by Major Singh, a former wrestler.[1]

Career

As a wrestler he reached fame after earning a silver medal in the 1991 Asian Wrestling Championships, Delhi, he also competed throughout the worlds. Bhola became a national hero when he bragged a gold medal in the Commonwealth Wrestling Championships. For his wrestling career, Government awarded him with the Arjuna Award. Bhola also appeared in a Punjabi language movie, Rustam-e-Hind which released in 2008. For a brief time Bhola served in the Punjab police as DSP before being suspended by the Punjab Police.[2]

Decline in career

Bhola was subject to controversy when in 2008 he was caught by Mumbai Police for drug peddling. Soon after the government took away his Arjuna award, followed by Punjab police suspending Bhola from his DSP post in 2002.[3]

Bhola restarted his drug trafficking business earning much wealth and possessing two posh bungalows, costly cars and having a sugar mill fitted with high resolution CCTV cameras around its perimeter.

He was arrested again in 2015 by Punjab Police along with Ram Singh, a boxer, for alleged participation in synthetic drug cartel of ₹ 700 crore.[4]

According to sources, Bhola was also convicted for running illegal drug manufacturing business from his home. According to Punjab Police he is the head of the Punjab-based drug racket. The drugs where trafficked from Pakistani border areas and is supplied to Mumbai and parts of Himachal Pradesh.[5]

References

  1. ↑ "Sports champ to disgraced criminal: The fall of wrestler Jagdish Bhola". 2 November 2014. Retrieved 9 July 2016.
  2. ↑ "Know how Arjuna Award winner Jagdish Bhola became a smuggler". Retrieved 9 July 2016.
  3. ↑ "Police seize drugs, cash from Arjuna Awardee Wrestler Jagdish Bhola's home, Bhola absconds". Retrieved 9 July 2016.
  4. ↑ "Drug lord Jagdish Bhola fractures his leg in jail".
  5. ↑ "Den of drugs: How Punjab politcos are linked to Rs 700-crore drug racket". Retrieved 9 July 2016.
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