Overview

• The state government has sent a proposal to the Law and Judiciary Department to determine if the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act can apply to large-scale gutkha and pan masala trafficking.
• Minister Narhari Zirwal has instructed investigators to examine alleged smuggling through the Dahisar and Mulund toll plazas to plug key cross-border routes.
• Authorities report they have seized banned gutkha and pan masala valued at ₹450 crore and filed over 10,000 related cases since the 2012 prohibition.
• Mumbai Police and Crime Branch Unit 6 arrested Mohammad Ghaus Zaroor Ahmad Khan in Navi Mumbai for hoarding banned products worth ₹1.17 lakh following intelligence-led raids.
• Opposition legislators accuse local police, FDA officials and RTO officers of colluding with smugglers and are demanding a broader accountability probe.