Police Raid Hookah Café in Manipal; Case Registered Against Manager and Eight Others Under COTPA
Manipal: Acting on credible information about the alleged illegal consumption of hookah, the Manipal Police raided the DRNK LAB Café in Vidyaratnanagar and registered a case under the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA) against the café manager and eight customers.
The raid was conducted on August 6 by a police team led by Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) Vamana of the Manipal Police Station, along with Head Constables Suresh Shetty and Chetan Kumar, and Police Constables Raviraj and Umesh. The team inspected the DRNK LAB Café, located on the first floor of IRIS Plaza on D.C. Office Road.
During the raid, police allegedly found eight young men smoking hookah inside the café. They were identified as S. Riyaz of Kundapura, Zeeshan Abdul Zaheer of Byndoor, Mohammed Sameer of Gangolli, Mohammed Sawad, Krishna, Chirag, and Anveeth of Udupi, and Taranath of Kaup. All eight were taken into custody for questioning.
Police also detained the café’s manager and cashier, Mohammed Shafan (22), a resident of Mannur village in Bantwal taluk, who allegedly supplied hookah to the customers. A mahazar was conducted at the scene, and the necessary evidence was collected before a report was submitted to the Station House Officer.
Based on the findings of the raid, the Manipal Police registered a case under the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA) against the café manager and the eight individuals allegedly found consuming hookah. Further investigation is underway.