Man held for illegal sale of cooking gas in southeast Delhi; 62 LPG cylinders seized

A 28-year-old man was arrested for allegedly selling LPG cylinders illegally in Jamia Nagar area of southeast Delhi, with police recovering 62 cylinders and a vehicle used for transportation, an official said on Tuesday.

The accused, identified as Shahnawaz, was caught during routine patrolling on Monday in Yamuna Pusta area, he said.

Police said a team spotted Shahnawaz standing near a tempo loaded with LPG cylinders and selling them in the area. On being questioned, he failed to produce any valid licence or authorisation for the sale of cylinders.

A total of 62 LPG cylinders — 48 filled and 14 used — were recovered from the vehicle, which was also impounded, police said.

During preliminary enquiry, the accused revealed that he was selling LPG cylinders to local residents without issuing any receipts to earn higher profits. He also disclosed that he was working in connivance with another person, identified as Mukesh, who arranged the cylinders, a senior police official said.

A case was registered under the Essential Commodities Act and relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the accused was arrested.

“During interrogation, Shahnawaz told police that the cylinders were sourced from near an Indane gas agency in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, through his associate. The cylinders were allegedly loaded into the tempo at a secluded location before being transported to Delhi for illegal sale,” the official said.

He further revealed that he had brought around 70 cylinders from Uttar Pradesh a day prior to his arrest and sold them at inflated prices in the Jamia Nagar area, he added.

Efforts are underway to apprehend the co-accused Mukesh, while further investigation is in progress.

The arrest comes a day after Delhi Police registered multiple cases across the city against illegal storage, refilling and black marketing of LPG cylinders, with over 600 cylinders seized in a major crackdown.