Nagpur police seize banned tobacco worth Rs 1.10 lakh and 26 bundles of nylon manja

Tehsil police have launched a drive in Nagpur against those selling prohibited tobacco products and banned nylon manja. In two separate actions, police seized the illegal goods. In the tobacco case, goods worth about Rs 1.10 lakh were recovered from two places, while 26 bundles of nylon manja were seized from another accused. Police are now examining the supply chain to find the source of the banned goods and who else is involved in the illegal trade.

The first action began with a tip-off received by the Detection Branch (DB) squad of Tehsil police. While the squad was on patrol, it learnt that a man was allegedly selling banned tobacco products and had stored a large stock in a rented house in Kasabpura.

Acting on this information, police raided the house of Muzzamil alias Kau Ahmed Wakil. He lived in rented premises owned by Iqbal Ansari, near the Jamaat-e-Ulema office in Kasabpura. Police arrested him and seized prohibited tobacco products from him.

During questioning, he allegedly told investigators that he had obtained the stock from Harshad alias Golu Sheikh, who lives in Hasanbagh. Police then raided Sheikh's house, but he was not at home at the time. A search nevertheless turned up banned tobacco products worth about Rs 56,000.

A case has been registered at Tehsil police station on a complaint from Food and Drug Administration (FDA) inspector Sheetal Deshpande. Police are investigating where the tobacco came from. Efforts are also under way to identify others linked to the supply and distribution chain.

In the second action, Tehsil police received information that a man was coming near Gandhibagh Garden to sell banned nylon manja. Acting on the tip-off, police laid a trap and detained Wasim Akram Mohammed Ahmed (33). In a search, 26 bundles of nylon manja were found in a plastic sack allegedly in his possession, police said.

Police are now investigating where the accused obtained the nylon manja. They are also looking for the person who supplied the goods.

Further investigation in both cases is on.