The sand mafia that dominated the ghats with brute force, led by kingpin Kallu Khan and his nine-member gang, has been slapped with the stringent Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) in a first-of-its-kind action against an organised crime syndicate. Khan, who had issued an open death threat to those who dared to oppose him, has several offences, including attempt to murder, in his history sheet. He operated a WhatsApp group to monitor and share real-time police movements, enabling his gang to evade raids and continue illegal sand smuggling operations. Many other group admins are also under the scanner of the Nagpur (Rural) police, an official said.
Case Registration and Arrests
Bhiwapur police registered the case following the interception of two vehicles on April 24, including a 12-wheeler tipper loaded with illegally mined sand and a scout vehicle used for reconnaissance. Driver of the sand-laden tipper, Kaiser Ali Riyazuddin Ali (47), and scout vehicle driver Mohammad Eenajul alias Kallu Khan (40), were arrested. Subsequent investigations led to the arrest of Suraj Gabhne (27) from Gudegaon in Bhandara district, and Dinesh Kakade from Dongargaon in Nagpur district. The remaining five accused, all from Nagpur and adjoining areas, are being actively tracked.
Police Action and Approval
IG, Nagpur Range, Sandip Patil approved the MCOCA application for Nagpur Rural police. 'We are aiming to smash the backbone of the sand mafia. All district police chiefs have been issued instructions to dismantle the sand supply chain. This inflicts substantial loss to the state exchequer,' said IG Patil. Nagpur Rural under SP Harssh A Poddar has repeatedly cracked down on the sand mafia. Sources stated that the WhatsApp group admin, Kakade, has two cases registered against him and confirmed there was already a MCOCA proposal against Kallu Khan, whose video threatening a sand ghat owner employee went viral.
Modus Operandi and Impact
Authorised sand ghat owners, who secured their operations through legitimate government auctions, had been continuously threatened by Kallu, sources said, adding they continued to suffer huge financial losses and the government lost royalty. Police stated the syndicate operated in a highly sophisticated and organised manner. They prepared fake sand transportation licences and royalty papers to cheat the government of revenue. The gang allegedly used the same vehicle registration number plates on multiple trucks, switched off GPS trackers, and employed scout vehicles to alert members about police movements via their WhatsApp network. The coordinated approach allowed them to plunder riverbeds across Vidarbha, causing substantial financial loss to the state exchequer and severe environmental damage, including river erosion, groundwater depletion, and ecological imbalance.
Investigation and Legal Action
A thorough investigation, including seven-day police custody remand, expert interrogation, and technical evidence, established the gang's repeated involvement in illegal sand theft. The accused have multiple prior cases at Bhiwapur, Umred, and other police stations in Nagpur Rural, Nagpur City, and Bhandara districts. Despite earlier cases and preventive actions, they continued their operations, forcing police to escalate under MCOCA. Bhiwapur police prepared a detailed proposal under MCOCA. After approval, stringent MCOCA sections were added to the existing FIR registered under various BNS sections, Section 4 of the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act 1957, Section 3 of the Public Property Damage Act 1984, and Section 15 of the Environment Protection Act.
