Mira-Bhayandar: Personnel from the crime branch unit (Zone I), raided a matka (gambling) den running from a makeshift tent located in the coastal area of Uttan near Bhayandar on Sunday. While nine people including the two matka operators Munir Mahi Memon, 44, and Anil Kumar Singh, 43, were apprehended, gambling material including betting chits and cash was seized from the spot.
Acting on a tip-off, the team led by assistant sub inspector Raju Tambe under the guidance of police inspector Aviraj Kurhade swooped down on the den tenement behind a cake shop at Uttan Naka at around 2pm. The operator was caught red-handed while accepting and placing single and digit numerical bets on matka’s including Milan Day, Jai Maa, Joker and Kalyan Rattan Challenge, police said.
The illegal activities were brazenly going on under the jurisdiction of the Uttan coastal police station, officials of which had failed to take action, prompting the crime branch unit to form a special team and bust the gambling den.
Matka is a game in which people bet a stake on random numbers. Locals alleged that the place was flocked by people including those with a criminal background, liquor addicts and nuisance-makers, making the area unsafe for others.
Meanwhile, an offence under section 12 (A) of the Maharashtra Prevention of Gambling Act, 1887 has been registered against all the accused at the local police station.
