New Delhi: The CBI on Wednesday said its officers conducted searches at around 35 locations including Chennai, Thiruvallur, Tuticorin, Pondicherry, Bangalore, Mumbai & Guntur in an on-going investigation relating to gutka scam case. “The places searched are residential premises of the Promoters/Directors of the Company and other public servants including officials of Sales Tax Department, Customs & Central Excise, Food Safety & Drug Administration Department and jurisdictional Police officials”, it said in a media release here.
Recalling that the CBI had registered the gutka case on the orders of the Madras high court on April 26 (2018) to investigate “all aspects of the offence of alleged illegal manufacture, import, supply, distribution & sale of Gutkha and other forms of chewable tobacco which are banned in the State of Tamil Nadu and the Union Territory of Puducherry”, the agency said it was found that despite the 2013 ban on the tobacco substances, the gutkha trade thrived by paying bribes to the regulatory authorities.
