Dhule police seize banned tobacco products worth Rs 86 lakh

NASHIK: Banned tobacco products worth Rs 85 lakh was seized by Shirpur police of Dhule district near Shahada Phata on the Mumbai Agra highway late on Friday.
According to police, the container carrying the banned products was on its way to Kolhapur when it was intercepted. The vehicle has been seized while its driver stands arrested.
Assistant police inspector Chandrakant Patil, who is investigating the case, said they got a tip-off that a container carrying huge quantity of banned tobacco products was arriving at the Shahada Phata on the Mumbai Agra highway.
“Subsequently, Shirpur police laid a trap and intercepted the truck. When the driver of was questioned, he initially informed police that there was nothing objectionable in the vehicle. As police got suspicious about the articles being carried in the container, they brought the vehicle to the police station and found 180 boxes of banned tobacco products,” Patil said.
“The total worth of banned tobacco is around Rs 85.53 lakh, while the amount of the container is around Rs 15 lakh. Officials of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) were called to the police station following which an offence was registered against the driver,” he added.
Patil said that the suspect, Ramzan Nasaruddin, hails from Haryana and the truck had arrived from Delhi and was proceeding towards Kolhapur via Dhule. Shirpur taluka shares its boundary with Madhya Pradesh.
Sale and consumption of gutka and pan masala was banned in Maharashtra in July 2012. However, these products continue to make way into the state on a regular basis.
Police and FDA continue to take strict action against shopkeepers selling banned tobacco products and despite their continuous action these products are freely available at many shops and pan stalls in the city.