Who is “Lavish” – the Mumbai-based man who supplied MD to seven Indian states and was recently deported from Dubai

Joint Commissioner of Police (crime) Lakhmi Gautam said, “We have managed to strike the network of Salim Dola by arresting his son and nephew after they were traced to Dubai. Now we have arrested his right-hand man after getting him from Dubai to India with the help of sister agencies. Anyone involved in the drug trade will be brought to face the law, even if they have fled the country.”

Sources said the police were also tracking Salim Dola, suspected to be holed up in Turkey, where he had moved from the UAE after the deportation of his son and nephew between June and July this year.

Deputy Commissioner of Police Vishal Thakur said a case was registered after a woman was found in possession of 641 g of mephedrone on February 16, 2024. The police found the mephedrone had been manufactured at a Sangli factory, which was eventually raided, leading to the seizure of the drug worth Rs 252 crore. While the police arrested 12 people allegedly involved in the racket, they identified four others—Dola, his son, nephew, and Lavish—as wanted accused in the case.

Salim Dola leaves UAE for Turkey
The police provided their details to the UAE authorities. As soon as the UAE authorities detained his son and nephew in Dubai, Dola fled to Turkey, as he felt the chances of him being deported to India from there would be less, given the state of the relations between India and the European country.

A source said that while Lavish too had been detained, the police provided his details, including evidence they had gathered against him, following which he was deported. He was produced before a court on Wednesday and remanded in police custody till October 30.

DCP Thakur said, “Shaikh, who earlier lived in Dongri along with Dola, was in the city till 2023. Around that time, when the Mumbai police had busted a drug factory in which he was involved, he fled to Dubai, where he was given the task of overseeing the drug network across seven Indian states, including Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and Telangana. His job was to provide drug networks in these states with chemicals needed for the production of mephedrone and to supply the final product to peddlers.”

Aatmaji Sawant, in charge of Unit VII of the crime branch, said that Lavish’s arrest would give the police details of various people involved in the drug trade—from production to distribution.