Nabha, October 20 — In Nabha in Patiala district, a late-night raid on a salon in the Baldev Nagar area has seized hundreds of restricted pharmaceutical capsules and led to one arrest, in what officials described as a new pattern of banned drugs being sold from everyday shops such as salons and tea stalls instead of chemist shops.

Police recovered 250 capsules of 300 mg pregabalin and 200 capsules of tramadol. Salon owner Jatinder Singh was taken into custody at the scene, and police registered a case against him under the NDPS Act and Section 223 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

The raid was led by Nabha MLA Gurdev Singh, known as Dev Mann, in coordination with local police. Sadar Nabha SHO Jaspreet Singh Kahlon confirmed the investigation is ongoing, said the chemist shop suspected of supplying the salon has been identified, and officials indicated further arrests are expected.

Pregabalin is prescribed for nerve pain and tramadol is an opioid painkiller; both carry a high risk of misuse, and Punjab banned pregabalin capsules above 75 mg last year, yet 300 mg variants were recovered in this raid. Sources: Mirror Now and News18 Punjab.