Gutkha haul found in ASI’s wife’s house; tenant arrested, stock worth Rs 36 lakh seized

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar

Authorities seized gutkha worth Rs 36.06 lakh from a house owned by the wife of a city police ASI, leaving officers stunned. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), along with Satara police, carried out the raid at Martandnagar, Satara, on November 26.

FDA officer Sulakshana Jadhavar acted on a tip-off that tenant Tabish Khan (33, Jalan nagar) had stocked banned gutkha and tobacco products at the premises. With support from police inspector Krishna Shinde, the team raided the house around 3 pm and found three rooms packed with gutkha packets, tobacco and raw material. Police arrested Tabish on the spot. PSI Govind Ekillwale produced him before court, which remanded him to police custody till December 2.

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Property link shocks officials

The house is registered in the name of a police ASI’s wife, a detail that emerged when FDA checked ownership records. Officers expressed embarrassment as the illegal stock was stored in a police officer’s family property. Tabish also has a previous gutkha-selling case registered at Jinsi police station.