Hyderabad police seize gutkha products worth Rs 4.18 cr since Jan 2020

Hyderabad City Police seized contraband worth a staggering Rs 1 crore on a single day on Saturday and arrested five persons following raids across the city

Hyderabad: In a major crackdown on smuggling, storage and sale of banned tobacco products, the Hyderabad City Police seized contraband worth a staggering Rs 1 crore on a single day on Saturday and arrested five persons following raids across the city.

The raids were carried out by different teams and many of them were based on tip offs and intel from informants. The biggest seizure was from a raid by the Commissioner’s Task Force (North), who caught three persons, Pratap Kumar Bhasker (56) of Rajendranagar and native of Uttarakhand, Amith Anil Yadav (19) of Begum Bazaar and native of Karnataka, Mohan Raghoba Shadole (50) a resident of Begum Bazaar and a native of Bidar.

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“The three persons formed a syndicate and were smuggling and distributing gutkha and other tobacco products in violation of different laws. They were caught and products worth Rs 71.93 lakh were seized,” City Police Commissioner Anjani Kumar said. The other raids, carried out at various locations in the South and East zones, the police seized tobacco products worth Rs 30.18 lakh. A total of 31 cases were registered, the Commissioner said.

According to officials, the Commissioner’s Task Force, since January 2020, has seized gutkha products worth Rs 4.18 crore from the city and booked 713 cases. A total of 848 persons involved in the illegal sale of tobacco products were held. Police said despite the ban on sale of gutkha in Telangana, manufacturers were smuggling them from Karnataka and Maharashtra into the city through different vehicles.

“The City Police are initiating firm action against those involved in these activities. People should inform us of any illegal activity reported in your area,” Anjani Kumar said, adding the public could call up the police on 94906-16555.

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