Pakistan-made skin-whitening creams, soaps worth Rs 7 lakh seized in Hyderabad

Police in Hyderabad have seized cosmetic products worth around Rs 7 lakh that were allegedly imported from Pakistan without the required authorisation or registration, officials said on Thursday.

The products were found during a joint raid by the police and the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO).

Two cases have been registered against five people for their alleged "unauthorised sale" of the products. The seized items included beauty creams and soaps marketed for skin-whitening purposes.

According to Hyderabad Police, the raid and inspection were carried out at shops in the city on September 30 after officials received credible information about the sale and distribution of unauthorised cosmetic products suspected to have been imported from Pakistan.

During the raid, officials said the products found at the premises were among the unauthorised or banned items identified in an earlier government order. They also said the products had not been issued the required registration certificate for import into India by the competent authority.

Police said a preliminary enquiry found that the products were being procured through a Mumbai-based dealer or supplier, who is suspected to have received or arranged the products from outside India and supplied them to dealers in Hyderabad.

It also emerged that the local sellers were not maintaining proper purchase bills, invoices or other supporting documents related to the procurement of the Pakistan-origin products.

The seized stock has been valued at about Rs 7 lakh. Police said two cases were registered against five persons under relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940.

The investigation is under way to identify the Mumbai-based supplier and others involved in the supply chain, trace the source and mode of import, and verify purchase bills, invoices and transport records.

Officials said the action followed specific inputs on the sale of Pakistan-made cosmetic products in Hyderabad, and the investigation is now focused on tracking the supplier network and import route.