Police arrest 2 with Rs 7 L gutkha

Aurangabad, Oct 22:

The Osmanpura police on Wednesday night arrested two persons who were smuggling banned gutkha worth Rs 7 lakh from Belgaum district of Karnataka.

They have been identified as Shivhar Gopalrao Malshikhre (40, New Ganeshnagar, Garkheda) and driver Shyam Pandurang Waghmare (20, Shivajinagar).

There is a ban on selling and possessing gutkha across the State. Despite the ban, gutkha is brought here from other states under a pile of different goods.

According to the police, they received a tip-off that gutkha is being brought here on Wednesday night by a tempo. Acting on the tip-off, a squad headed by PSI Kalyan Shelke and comprising constable Ashraf Syed, Satish Jadhav, Santosh Shirsath and Prakash Sonawne apart from officers of food and drugs administration (FDA) laid a trap in Osmanpura under the guidance of deputy commissioner of police (DCP) Deepak Girhe and ACP Nishikant Bhujbal.

The squad intercepted a tempo and searched it at midnight. The tempo occupants told the police that they are transporting stock of oil cakes. Police found bags of gutkha under the oil cake piles. Police seized 42 bags of gutkha worth Rs 7 lakh and tempo of Rs 7 lakh and registered a case against the accused and arrested them.