Dhanusha, Nov. 30 -- Chandreshwore Mahato, 23, enrolled to study medicine because his parents forced him to. The pressure of the course took a toll on him, says Mahato-after all, it was not a subject he was interested in. As the days went by, Mahato, currently a second-year MBBS student, found solace in the sedative lull of Nitravet, a drug prohibited to use except when prescribed by a physician.

Mahato is a local of Umaprempur in Dhanushadham Municipality and had taken up rent in Kadam Chowk in Janakpur. On November 19, the police confiscated 1,500 files of Nitravet that he had hidden in packets of dalmoth and his shoes. Mahato was arrested and a case was filed against him at the Dhanusa District Police Office. In his court statement, M...