Bengaluru, Sep 19 : More than 8,000 accused involved in drug peddling have been convicted in the last 1.4 years in Karnataka, said state Home Minister G. Parameshwara on Thursday.

Speaking to reporters here on the formation of a task force to address the drug menace in the state, Parameshwara stated, 'In the last one and half years we have declared a war against drugs. Hundreds of crores of drugs have been confiscated, cases are booked against those who were involved in drug peddling and nearly more than 8,000 persons were convicted in the last 1.4 years."

'We had also initiated action on the drug menace between 2013 and 2018 when Congress was in power. We had initiated steps to tackle the drug menace to avoid any situation like Punjab where the menace has reached a serious level,' he pointed out.

"But recently, it was noticed the drug menace in hostels and colleges and hence, the high-level task force was formed at the level of cabinet ministers. The government is serious about tackling the menace," Parameshwara stated.

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday chaired a high-level meeting with the police department and ministers to contain the drug menace in the state. He also announced that the government was determined to cut the roots of the drug network in the state and announced a task force headed by Home Minister Parameshwara.

The CM stated that regular meetings will be held to devise necessary strategies. 'The task force will include the Health Minister, Education Minister, and Medical Education Minister,' he stated.

"There is information that the drug menace is particularly severe in the East division of Bengaluru. A decision has been made to take firm action. Drugs are being supplied to the state from several states, including Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh. A new strategy is being devised to stop this," CM Siddaramaiah claimed.

Talking about the rape case lodged against BJP MLA Munirathna, Parameshwara stated, 'A complaint has been filed and once the complaint is taken the legal procedures will be taken up. I have not got the briefing and I will talk about it later. No one will say that people in power should be doing all this and when those in public life indulge in activities against the law, action will be initiated against them.'

When asked whether the action on BJP MLA Munirathna was a retaliation to BJP's allegations, he said, 'Our government will not pursue the politics of hatred. In fact, they are pursuing the politics of vengeance. Let them uphold anything that has been done against the law. There is no necessity for us to pursue the politics of hatred. The people have elected us and opportunity is given to us to work, we are carrying out the work. It is not required for us to pursue politics of hatred.'

On the 'One Nation One Election' issue, Parameshwara said, 'Still many more clarifications and explanations need to come out regarding One Nation One Election and it requires consent from the two-thirds of the states in the country. The high power committee led by former President Ramanath Kovind had just submitted a report in this regard and the cabinet has accepted it. Let's see the future developments in this regard. We will see when they ask for the opinion of the state government or if they want the issue to be discussed in the Assembly,' he maintained.

/IANS