A 21-year-old man was arrested for storing and selling banned firecrackers in northeast Delhi’s West Jyoti Nagar area, police said on Wednesday. A total of 122 kg of banned firecrackers were seized during the operation.
A senior police officer said a tip-off was received regarding the illegal storage and sale of banned firecrackers in the area. Following this, a team was formed and a well-coordinated raid was conducted.
During the operation, the accused, identified as Vivek, a resident of West Jyoti Nagar, was nabbed while allegedly hoarding and selling banned firecrackers from his grocery store during the ongoing festive season, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime) Vikram Singh said.
“A total of 11 heavy white plastic bags containing illegal/banned firecrackers were recovered and seized from his grocery shop while he was found receiving orders over his mobile phone. A total of 122 kg of banned firecrackers of different brands and types were found in his possession,” the DCP said.
Police said the operation was part of the continuous efforts of the Delhi Police to curb the illegal storage, transportation, and sale of banned firecrackers in the national capital, in compliance with environmental safety norms and court directives.
A case was registered on Monday under Sections 288 and 223(B) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Sections 5 and 15 of the Environment Act, and Section 9B of the Explosives Act at the Crime Branch police station.
According to the police, Vivek runs a small grocery store on the ground floor of his residence at West Jyoti Nagar. “During his routine business, some customers inquired about the availability of firecrackers. Seeing it as a profitable opportunity during the festive season, he procured banned firecrackers from another state to sell them in the local market at multiple times the cost price for easy profit,” Singh added.
Earlier, the Delhi Police had seized 725 kg of banned firecrackers in two separate operations carried out in the Dwarka and Najafgarh areas and nabbed two people for allegedly stockpiling the crackers.
