The Auroville police on Thursday arrested three persons and seized 250 kg of banned gutkha and pan masala products near the inter-state border.
Following a tip-off on the movement of the contraband, a special police team intercepted a car at Kalaivanar Nagar on the Puducherry-Tindivanam Road.
The police team conducted a thorough search of the vehicle and found 32 bags containing gutkha and pan masala and ₹3.24 lakh in cash.
The police identified the accused as A. Mohan Lal, 23, and M. Mahendar, 36, of Puducherry and K. Rajaram, 30 of Bengaluru. Investigations by the police revealed that the trio had smuggled the contraband from Bengaluru. The police also seized two cars and four mobile phones from them. A case has been registered.
