A powerful politico ruling the roost in an area hallowed by the Buddha’s visit has become a guardian angel of dope-fiends and dope peddlers there, they say.

This worthy who took to politics following a career that gave him the appellation, ‘hero’, has become a veritable nuisance to the law-enforcing ones.

The area the politico looks on as his domain is said to be fast turning into a hotbed of crime and drug trafficking and he has become a stumbling block to carrying out a cleansing operation by the arms of the law.

Whenever a doper or a trafficker is arrested, the politico would phone up some khakied high-up and order that the chap be immediately released. “He would not stop at using his clout to get the miscreants released; he would even blame us for deliberately harassing his active supporters!” a khakied source said.