MCOCA to be amended for effective use against suppliers of gutkha: CM Fadnavis

Nagpur, Dec 9 (PTI) Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday said the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) would be amended so that it can be invoked against suppliers and distributors of banned substances such as gutkha, pan masala and charas.

Fadnavis, who holds the home portfolio, made the statement in the Maharashtra legislative assembly here.

Gutkha (scented tobacco mix) is banned in the state.

To questions raised by Congress MLA Aslam Shaikh, he said, "Under the present MCOCA provisions, there must be an element of threat or physical harm for its invocation. We have already moved a proposal to the home department to amend the law so that habitual suppliers and distributors of banned substances can be booked under it." While BJP MLA Prashant Thakur first raised the issue in the lower house, Shaikh sought to know why stringent provisions of the MCOCA were not being effectively used against habitual offenders violating the ban on gutkha and similar products.

The chief minister said while cases are being registered, the existing legal provisions are weak. "There is a need to make the law more stringent and effective to curb the illegal trade," he added.

A large number of cases regarding the supply or sale of gutkha, `mava', cigarettes, supari, pan masala, charas and ganja have been registered across the state, including Navi Mumbai (1,144), Ahmednagar (185), Jalna (90), Akola (35), Nashik (133), Chandrapur (230), Solapur (108), Buldhana (634), Nagpur (49) and Yavatmal (1,706), Fadnavis informed.

For the violation of gutkha ban, offences have been registered under sections 123 (causing hurt by means of poison, etc), 274 (food/drink adulteration) and 275 (sale of noxious food or drink) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita along with relevant provisions of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, the CM said. PTI ND KRK