One held for selling e-cigarettes in Hyderabad; contraband worth Rs 8L seized

Hyderabad: A 23-year-old was arrested by the Commissioner’s Task Force, on Tuesday, March 10, for allegedly selling banned electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) in Hyderabad.

Acting on a tip off, officials raided the house of Tikale Rohan, located at Lower Dhoolpet under the limits of Mangalhat police station.

As many as 282 electronic cigarettes of various brands, including Yuoto Beyonder, Elfbar and Raya D1, worth Rs 8.72 lakh were seized.

According to police, Rohan and his friend Shivnani Pratham planned to sell banned e-cigarettes in the city. They came in contact with Perwin Salman Zubair, a resident of Banjara Hills, who helped them procure the contraband from Mumbai at low prices.

Rohan and Pratham transported the package to Hyderabad through Pragathi Parcel Services and stored it at his house.

Police said Pratham created a WhatsApp group to reach out to customers. Their main targets were college students, teenagers and youth. Through the platform, Orders were received, through the platformw and payments were made via PhonePe. They used Rapido services to dispatch the products to customers.

Both Pratham and Zubair are on the run.

Electronic cigarettes contain nicotine and harmful chemical-laced flavours, making them addictive and injurious to health, police said, adding that their easy availability has been contributing to increased usage among the younger generation.

The accused and the seized material were handed over to the Station House Officer of Mangalhat police station for further legal action.