Police have arrested and sent to jail Arun Gautam, the sarpanch of Samoda village, who came into focus after exposing a case of illegal opium cultivation in Durg district of Chhattisgarh. He is accused of posting objectionable material against administrative and revenue officials through his WhatsApp status. According to police, preventive action had earlier been taken against the sarpanch by having him bound over, but action was taken after such activity surfaced again.
According to police, Samoda resident Jitendra Deshmukh had filed a written complaint against Arun Gautam. The complaint alleged that he had shared objectionable material related to administrative officials on his WhatsApp status. On the basis of the complaint and a memorandum received from the Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM), Durg, a case was registered at Pulgaon police station under crime number 950/26, under Section 296 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and Section 67 of the IT Act.
Mobile phone seized, sent to judicial remand
Police arrested Arun Gautam and seized the mobile phone allegedly used to make the post. A report was submitted in the SDM court regarding violation of the bound-over conditions. After this, the accused was sent to jail on judicial remand. Durg Police described it as the first action of its kind in Chhattisgarh in which a person was sent to jail for violating bound-over conditions.
Came into focus in March after exposing opium cultivation
Arun Gautam had made headlines in March 2026 after bringing to light a case of illegal opium cultivation near Samoda village. Following information and complaints from villagers, a joint team of police and the administration took action in the field. The investigation found that opium cultivation had allegedly been carried out over about 5.62 acres. Several accused, including a BJP leader, were arrested in the case.
Police have currently started an investigation into the matter linked to the social media post.
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