Varanasi, Feb. 9 -- Kotwali police and Special Investigation Team (SIT) arrested five individuals accused in the codeine-based cough syrup case from Bharsar Link Road, Mirzapur Bypass, in Varanasi on Sunday. Three of them were carrying a bounty of Rs 25,000 each. The arrested accused included Amit Jaiswal 25, Divesh Jaiswal 26, Ankush Singh 35, each carrying a bounty of Rs 25000, all residents of Varanasi, Abhinav Kumar Yadav 25 , and Ghanshyam Maurya 26, said a police officer. Assistant commissioner of police, Kotwali, Vijay Kumar Singh said, "During questioning, the accused revealed that they started smuggling of codeine cough syrup at the behest of the racket's kingpin Shubham Jaiswal." "They used to procure large consignments of codeine-based cough syrup through fake and forged GST invoices and e-way bills from Shaili Traders in Ranchi, Jharkhand. The syrup was then distributed through medical firms in various states across the country for recreational drug use rather than for medicinal purposes," he added. htc...