Pune: Porter Delivery Leads Police to Illegal E-Cigarette and Hookah Shop
Reported by Mubarak Ansari
Viman Nagar, 1st July 2026: The Vimantal (Airport) Police in Pune dismantled an illegal online network selling banned e-cigarettes and hookah flavors. The crackdown resulted in the arrest of two individuals and the seizure of contraband worth ₹1,42,690.
The action was executed on Tuesday, June 30, following a meticulously planned sting operation using a decoy customer.
According to Senior Police Inspector Govind Jadhav of the Vimantal Police Station, the operation was initiated based on actionable intelligence. “Our police constable, Hariprasad Punde, received a reliable tip-off regarding the illegal online sale of prohibited e-cigarettes and hookah flavors within the jurisdiction of the Vimantal Police Station. Acting on this lead, we decided to lay a trap to catch the perpetrators,” Inspector Jadhav stated.
To catch the racketeers red-handed, the police dispatched a decoy customer who placed an online order for hookah flavors. A trap was laid near the CCD Chowk, close to the Konark Nagar Society in Viman Nagar, Pune.
“We intercepted a delivery agent from the ‘Porter’ logistics service who arrived to deliver the parcel. Upon inspecting the package, our team found prohibited hookah flavors valued at ₹18,320,” Inspector Jadhav added.
Upon interrogating the delivery boy, investigators learned that the parcel had been dispatched from a shop named ‘Shisha Corner’, located at Shop No. 5, Kad Nagar Chowk, NIBM Road, near HDFC Bank, Hills and Dales, Mohammedwadi, Pune.
A police team, led by Police Sub-Inspector (PSI) Nitin Rathod, immediately raided the establishment. During the search, the police recovered banned hookah flavors, e-cigarettes, and other related contraband valued at ₹1,24,370.
Two suspects operating from the shop were arrested on the spot:
Asad Chandmiya Barbhaiya (31), a resident of Baigadi Nagar, Kondhwa, Pune.
Vikas Ramesh Bagul (33), a resident of Mohammedwadi, Pune.
The Vimantal Police have registered a case (Crime Register No. 317/2026) against the accused under Sections 7 and 8 of the Prohibition of Electronic Cigarettes (Production, Manufacture, Import, Export, Transport, Sale, Distribution, Storage and Advertisement) Act, 2019, and Sections 7(2) and 20(2) of the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products (Prohibition of Advertisement and Regulation of Trade and Commerce, Production, Supply and Distribution) Act, 2003 & 2004.
The operation was conducted under the guidance of Additional Commissioner of Police (East Regional Division) Manoj Patil, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Zone 7) Abhinash Kumar, and Assistant Commissioner of Police (Kharadi Division) Sunil Dorge.
The team, supervised by Senior Police Inspector Govind Jadhav and Police Inspector (Crime) Mahesh Bolke, comprised PSI Nitin Rathod, Police Constable Hariprasad Punde, and police personnel Laloo Kanhe, Rahul Joshi, Rupesh Pisal, Yogesh Thopte, Sachin Manjare, Ambadas Chavan, Digambar Gore, Rajiv Thompe, Prashant Sutar, Ankush Jogdande, Asha Dhadwad, and Sana Sheikh.
