Hookah parlour raided in Mumbai; 42 booked

The crime branch of the Mumbai Police raided a hookah parlour being operated from the terrace of a hotel in suburban Andheri in the early hours of Saturday and booked 42 persons, an official said.

During the raid conducted around 2:30 am, the CrimeIntelligence Unit (CIU) found that at least 27 customers were being served hukkah, he said.

The hookah was found to be tobacco-mixed, the official said, adding that various hookah flavours, pots, cigarettes and other equipment were seized.

A case was registered against the staff of the parlour, the customers and others under various sections ofthe India Penal Code (IPC), the Cigarettes and Other TobaccoProducts Act and the Disaster Management Act, he said.

A ban on hookah was imposed in Mumbai after the 2017Kamla Mills fire incident in which 14 people lost their lives.