Nagpur: The recent arrests of betel nut trader Wasim Bawla by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in Mumbai on charges of tax evasion, duty evasion, and money laundering have had a ripple effect on the Nagpur market.
According to a report in a local English daily, local traders in Nagpur are taking precautionary measures such as shifting their stocks to secure locations and creating a fake shortage in order to earn higher profit margins.
Gold Rate
05 May 2025
The report highlights that many betel nut traders, working in collusion with central and state law enforcement agencies, have been thriving at the expense of the state exchequer. This nexus has resulted in significant revenue losses amounting to crores of rupees for the government. Previously priced at Rs 350-380 per kilogram, the betel nut is now being sold at Rs 400-425 per kilogram as traders have deliberately created an artificial shortage following Bawla’s arrest.
The report further reveals that numerous traders have removed their stocks from the market. Traders from states in the northeast, including Assam, Nagaland, and Mizoram, which receive betel nuts from the Indo-Bangladesh and Indo-Myanmar borders via Indonesia, have temporarily halted their supply. The same is true for traders supplying betel nuts from other dry and seaports like Tuticorin, Chennai, and Mumbai via Sri Lanka, according to the report.
Some consignments that were already en route from the northeast have been diverted to other states. Although traders from other states like “Irshad Bangalore” and “Farooque Bombay” are sending betel nuts to Nagpur, the supply is insufficient to meet the demand. This situation has allowed local traders to hoard the stock and maximize their profits.
Bawla’s remand custody with the Mumbai ED, granted until Friday, has placed several betel nut traders, particularly those close to Bawla, under scrutiny. Speculation suggests that many others from the city are also under the radar of the ED.
Associates closely associated with Bawla have reportedly gone into hiding. The report mentions that one of Bawla’s close relatives is involved in the real estate business. Insider sources suggest that many of these traders have already transferred their betel nut stocks from cold storages in Kalamna, Kapsi, and Wathoda to personal warehouses.
The report states that the transfer of betel nut stocks is being expedited to minimize the risk of seizure during potential ED raids. Last year, numerous traders suffered significant losses when their stocks were seized following ED raids. To maintain the secrecy of their stock’s location, traders are now hiring auto-rickshaws to transport betel nuts from their warehouses directly to customers.
Highlighting the illegal nature of the trade, the report reveals that most interstate traders bring betel nuts to Nagpur by misdeclaring them as other local products or agricultural produce to evade taxes and duties. Many betel nut traders, including Jatin, Asif, Nitin, Pawan, Bunty, Munaf, Gani, Ashfaque, Junta, Ashraf, Anmol, Patna, Suchak, Tiku, Tinku, Mahavir, and several others, have managed to continue their operations despite repeated raids. Investigations by various agencies have implicated many of these traders, and their rapid rise in the industry has raised suspicions.
