Hyderabad: Man held for running illegal online hookah service

Hyderabad: The Hyderabad Commissioner’s Task Force, Central Zone Team, along with Khairtabad Police, apprehended a man operating an online service supplying hookah pots and flavors to customers.

The arrested individual, Nagaraju Raju alias Raja King (29), is a resident of Marithi Nagar in Khairtabad and originally from the Tramlined State. He has a prior arrest record in Ghatkesar under various IPC sections and the COTP Act.

Police seized six hookah pots, seven chillams, 11 hookah pipes, and other related materials from him. According to authorities, Raju and his parents migrated to Hyderabad, where his parents run a tiffin center. Previously employed at Chillax Cafe & Lounge in Banjara Hills, Raju devised a plan to deliver hookah pots and flavors directly to customers by developing online contacts and receiving orders.

He charged Rs 2,000 for each pot, supplying items that contain nicotine, thereby earning money illegally in violation of COTP Act regulations. Raju was apprehended on Thursday while delivering hookah pots and noxious flavors to customers; the materials were subsequently handed over to Khairtabad police for further action.