BJP Youth Leader Pamela Goswami Acquitted In 2021 Drug Case

BJP youth leader Pamela Goswami, arrested in 2021 for alleged drug possession, has been exonerated. The Calcutta High Court discharged her, a decision upheld by the Supreme Court in January 2024.

Pamela Goswami (Image: Facebook)

Editor's Note: This report rectifies earlier widespread coverage of Pamela Goswami’s 2021 arrest on drug charges. The Calcutta High Court has discharged Pamela Goswami, and the Supreme Court has upheld her exoneration. We acknowledge the importance of updating the record to reflect the judicial findings and Pamela Goswami's exoneration.

Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) youth wing leader Pamela Goswami has been discharged by the Calcutta High Court in the high-profile narcotics case that drew national attention during the 2021 West Bengal Assembly elections. Goswami was arrested on February 29, 2021, by New Alipore police following the alleged recovery of 76 grams of narcotic substance from her vehicle.

Supreme Court Upheld High Court’s Exoneration

In November 2023, the Calcutta High Court upheld the decision of Kolkata Police to discharge Pamela Goswami in the narcotics case. After legal proceedings spanning nearly three years, a two-judge bench of the Supreme Court on January 29, 2024, declined to interfere with the Calcutta High Court’s order exonerating Goswami. This effectively cleared her of allegations related to possession of narcotics, bringing the legal battle to a close.

Following her acquittal, Goswami took to X (formerly Twitter) to assert she was falsely implicated for political reasons ahead of the state polls. She alleged illegal detention and malicious prosecution, writing: “Before the 2021 State Assembly Elections, Kolkata Police falsely implicated me in a fabricated narcotics case. They illegally detained me for 10 months in Alipore Jail, @KolkataPolice’s SIT clearly mentioned in the charge sheet—‘No iota of evidence gathered against Pamela Goswami during the investigation so we pray for her discharge from the case’ yet I was illegally detained for 292 days in jail because I am an activist karyakarta of @BJP4India. Later on Supreme Court also discharged me from the case.”

The original report from February 20, 2021, follows:

Kolkata: In more trouble for Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) leader Pamela Goswami arrested for possession of narcotic substance, the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) court in Kolkata on Saturday sent her to police custody till February 25. Extremely upset with the verdict, Goswami demanded a Crime Investigation Department (CID) probe into the matter as the police personnel took her out of the court.

During the hearing in court, the BJYM leader alleged that she was framed as part of a “conspiracy” and demanded the arrest of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Rakesh Singh, who she claimed to be a close aide of party’s national general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya.

Singh, however, refuted Goswami’s charges and told ABP News in an exclusive conversation that he has no involvement with her or the case, adding he would quit politics if found guilty. 

Asserting that he was not in contact with Goswami for the past two years, Singh claimed it to be a trap by the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) in West Bengal to defame the BJP. He said there are chances of Goswami falsely naming other BJP leaders, adding “we are all ready to face it if required as we are not involved in such activities”. 

Singh further said the police should do seriously investigate the matter and verify all facts related to the case as Goswami can now name anybody, including her father. Goswami was arrested on Friday for possession of 100 gram of narcotic substance.