Muchhad Paanwala owner arrested for selling banned e-cigarettes

During Tiwari’s interrogation, the name of his supplier based in the Dana Bander area, the police raided the supplier and recovered e-cigarettes worth ₹13.65 lakh. “Tiwari was handed over to the VP Road police station for further legal action by ANC officials. We have arrested Tiwari and an investigation is going on,” said senior inspector Kishor Shinde of the VP Road police station

Mumbai: In its two-day “operation all out” against paan shops in the city, the Anti-Narcotics Cell (ANC) of the Mumbai police on Wednesday booked the owner of the famous Muchhad Paanwala for allegedly selling banned e-cigarettes.

ANC has registered in all six FIRs, including 4 against e-cigarette sellers. The fifth case was registered against the owner of a hookah material godown within the jurisdiction of the MRA police station in South Mumbai and 699 hookah packets worth ₹4.5 lakh were recovered, said a police official (HT Photo)

The ANC registered three more cases against paan shop owners for selling e-cigarettes near colleges and hospitals.

The police have arrested a total of 10 persons, including Shivkumar Tiwari, who owns the Mucchad Paanwala paan shop. Police said during the raid at Tiwari’s shop in Khetwadi, police recovered a total of 79 e-cigarettes worth ₹1.25 lakh.

During Tiwari’s interrogation, the name of his supplier based in the Dana Bander area, the police raided the supplier and recovered e-cigarettes worth ₹13.65 lakh. “Tiwari was handed over to the VP Road police station for further legal action by ANC officials. We have arrested Tiwari and an investigation is going on,” said senior inspector Kishor Shinde of the VP Road police station.

ANC has registered in all six FIRs, including 4 against e-cigarette sellers. The fifth case was registered against the owner of a hookah material godown within the jurisdiction of the MRA police station in South Mumbai and 699 hookah packets worth ₹4.5 lakh were recovered, said a police official.

The sixth case was registered after the Kandivali unit of the ANC laid a trap in Borivali West on Tuesday afternoon and arrested a 40-year-old Nigerian national and seized 12 grams of cocaine and 55 grams of mephedrone worth ₹15.80 lakh from him. The accused, who lives in the Nalasopara area, has come to India a few years ago on a tourist visa, said a police official.