New Delhi: From peanut butter to baby food supplements, a wide range of expired products were allegedly sold to unsuspecting customers by a shop owner near the Kapashera border in southwest Delhi, posing a serious public health risk. The illegal operation came to light after police conducted a raid and arrested the accused, Abdul Mannan Khan.Police said they received specific information on April 8 that a shop operating near the MCD toll plaza at the Kapashera border was selling expired food and cosmetic products at discounted rates.Deputy commissioner of police (Crime) Sanjeev Yadav said that to verify the input, decoy customers were deployed who purchased food items from the shop. Upon examination, the items were found to be expired and sold at reduced prices.“The team raided the premises and the shopkeeper was arrested. Officials from the Food Safety and Drug Control Department were called to the spot, and samples were collected for further testing,” he said.During the raid, a woman present at the shop also complained that she purchased food items from the outlet a day earlier and discovered that all of them were expired. A case was registered based on the complaint.“Khan procured expired, near-expiry or damaged food and cosmetic products from various sources at throwaway prices. These were stored at his premises and sold to customers at discounted rates to attract higher footfall and generate quick profits,” said police.The seized items included maida, sooji, poha, rawa, spices, peanut butter, baby food supplements, pulses, dairy products and a range of cosmetic and personal care items, weighing around 900 kg. In addition, dairy products such as curd and cheese weighing approximately 2,000 kg were destroyed as per prescribed procedures in the presence of food safety officials. The arrest was made by a team led by Inspector Yashendra Singh.Police said Khan, who was earlier a street vegetable vendor, came into contact with warehouse personnel during that period, which exposed him to the trade in expired and near-expiry products.In a separate case, police arrested three persons for allegedly manufacturing and selling counterfeit two-wheeler spare parts and packaging material worth around Rs 10 lakh.Following coordinated raids in Inderlok, Jhandewalan and the Mangolpuri Industrial Area, the accused — Riyazuddin (51), Anil Kumar (60) and Arjun Kumar (49) — were apprehended, and a printing and manufacturing unit was unearthed.Police seized around 1,040 pairs of fake brake shoes, 50 bundles of packaging material, nearly 14,000 MRP stickers, 400 cardboard boxes, 67,370 plastic packing pieces bearing fake logos and 10 printed rolls used for branding.
