Videos of policemen in the city of Hyderabad in India's southern state Telangana, stopping drivers and checking their phones for drug-related conversations by searching for keywords such as "ganja" have triggered an uproar on social media.
More than 100 policemen took part in the anti-drug drive that has been going on for the past two months.
"10 rowdy-sheeters [people with criminal records] were taken into custody and they were counselled to refrain from criminal activities," Hyderabad south zone deputy commissioner of police, Gajarao Bhupal, said.
Despite claims from officials that the search is not illegal since they are not forcing anybody to show them their phones, a group of netizens have hit out at Hyderabad police, accusing them of harassment and breach of privacy.