The agony and Ecstasy

ALLEN O'BRIEN / TNN / Sep 4, 2005, 00:48 IST

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Friday’s arrest of cocaine peddler Dev Chopra at a restaurant has once again brought into the spotlight the Delhi-drugs connection

Who is Dev Chopra?
The son of interior designer Gurmeet Chopra and an interior designer himself, Dev was caught trying to sell 15 gm of cocaine for Rs 65,000 to a couple at the Olive Bar and Kitchen.
The 27-year-old Janakpuri resident reportedly bought the cocaine from drug peddlers in Lajpat Nagar for Rs 3,000 and is believed to have a regular clientele in the city, including foreigners (mostly Nigerians), apart from supplying drugs to Pakistan.
Insiders claim that Dev supplied drugs to Bollywood actors and a Mumbai-based male model.

According to Sunil Khanna, COO, Olive Bar and Restaurant: "We have nothing to do with Chopra, we don't even know who he is.
There is no truth to allegations that he is the interior designer of Olive.
While no hotel or restaurant can stop a person from dinning on its premises, this incident marks the first time that Chopra has been spotted at Olive".
Says AD Singh, promoter, Olive Bar: "Nobody knows who Chopra is, not even the Delhi social circuit.

How then does one expect us to know him considering the fact that he wasn't even a regular here?
It so happens that Chopra was arrested at the Olive Bar And Kitchen ...
...since narcotics department personnel had information about Chopra��s presence there from other drug peddlers."
D for Delhi, D for Drugs
The who, where, how, what of the Capital's drug scene
Everybody-dunit: Any party animal who wants to rock all night does drugs, maintains a fashion designer.
And Delhi doesn't do drugs due to stress or peer pressure, it's just curiosity.
"If something helps one feel ecstatic for a short time without hurting anyone else, why make such a hue and cry about it?" asks model Aryan Vaid.
AD Singh feels "there is little" that can be done to stop the peddling of drugs in public places.
"This is because drug packets are easy to carry, and escape the notice of metal detectors."
Rave is the fave: "We're all invited to rave parties, they��re big affairs at farmhouses," says designer Puja Nayyar.
Adds Jattinn Kochchar, designer: "Everyone knows that drugs are available at rave parties.
Let's accept reality and deal with it in a mature way."
Modus operandi: Rave parties involving drugs are mostly organised via word of mouth.
The host and guests have a fair idea about police movements," says the teenage son of a socialite.
Drugs are also accessible once one becomes part of a chain.
A new entrant is given the cell number of the drugs supplier, plus password, by an existing consumer.
Once Consumer No 2 calls the supplier, he becomes part of the chain.

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