Lucifer Bar and Cafe owner arrested for serving hookah illegally in Greater Noida

Noida:A co-owner, a manager and an employee of a restro-bar in Uttar Pradesh's Greater Noida were arrested on Monday for allegedly serving hookah illegally to customers, police said.

The facility, located in the Ansal Plaza mall, was raided by the police over a tip-off, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Greater Noida) Abhishek Verma said.

"The police had got information that Lucifer Bar and Cafe in Ansal Plaza mall was serving hookah illegally. An operation was planned and the raid carried out Monday morning. The police teams found that hookah was being served there illegally,” DCP Verma said.

“Besides the coal, hookah and other items, the police also seized five beer bottles, which were meant for sale in Delhi only, inside the restro-bar which had around 25 customers at the time of the raid,” the officer said.

An FIR was later lodged at the local Knowledge Park police station under relevant sections of the Excise Act and Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA), he said.

Those arrested have been identified as Nishant Bhadana, one of the owners of the bar who was present at the spot, Jitendra Pratap Yadav, the manager, and Tushar Sharma, an employee, the police said.

The other co-owner of the facility -- Himanshu Bhadana -- has also been booked but since he was not present at the spot he is yet to be arrested, the police added.

The police said they let off the customers after informing them about the harms of tobacco consumption.