New Delhi, May 18 (IANS) The Delhi Police Crime Branch’s Anti-Robbery and Snatching Cell (ARSC) has busted two workshops involved in the manufacturing and sale of fake and duplicate bearings in Old Delhi and arrested two accused allegedly linked to the illegal trade, officials said on Monday.

According to the Delhi Crime Branch, the accused were procuring cheap imported bearings from foreign countries, engraving them with counterfeit trademarks of reputed brands such as HCH and NBC, and selling them in the market as genuine products.

During the operation, police recovered a total of 5,067 fake and duplicate bearings, four stamping and engraving machines, a packing machine, and large quantities of raw printing and packing materials used for preparing counterfeit products.

The operation was carried out by a team of ARSC Crime Branch led by Inspector K.K. Sharma under the supervision of ACP, ARSC, Sanjay Kumar Nagpal. The team included SIs Mohit Yadav and Jatan Singh, ASIs Mohd. Talim and Shyam Singh, Head Constables Kapil Raj Sharma, Sandeep, Sunil Kumar, Ravinder Singh, and Mahesh, Constable Sumit, and Woman Constable Neeshu.

Police said that on May 16, credible information was received regarding a workshop operating in the Farash Khana area where cheap imported bearings were allegedly being engraved with trademarks of reputed brands and sold as original products.

Acting on the tip-off, the Crime Branch team, accompanied by authorised legal representatives of the affected companies, conducted raids at two workshops located in Meer Madari Gali in the Farash Khana area of Delhi-6.

During the raid, both workshops were found engaged in the illegal activity of engraving counterfeit trademarks on low-cost imported bearings and packaging them as genuine branded products. The workshops were subsequently sealed by the police.

From Workshop No. 1 located at Meer Madari Gali, police recovered 4,959 fake and duplicate bearings of different sizes engraved with counterfeit HCH trademarks, three stamping and engraving machines, a packing machine, and raw printing and packing materials.

From Workshop No. 2 in the same locality, police recovered 87 large-size fake bearings and 21 small-size fake bearings bearing counterfeit NBC trademarks, along with a stamping and engraving machine and other printing and packing materials.

Following the raids, police registered FIR No. 131/26 dated May 17, under Sections 318(4) and 336(3) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Sections 63 and 65 of the Copyright Act at the Crime Branch Police Station, Delhi.

The two arrested accused have been identified as Amir Khan, 50, a resident of Lal Kuan near Hamdard Dawakhana in Delhi-6, and Mohd. Anas, 40, a resident of Lalita Park in Laxmi Nagar.

Police said Amir Khan is a fifth-pass and was engaged in purchasing old used bearings and repairing them. He was previously involved in a similar case registered in 2006 at Kamla Market Police Station under charges of cheating and violations of the Copyright Act.

Mohd. Anas, who is a 12th-pass, was allegedly involved in purchasing used bearings, repairing them, and reselling them in the market. Police said no previous criminal involvement has been found against him so far.

The Crime Branch stated that further investigation is underway to identify the complete network, trace the supply chain, and apprehend other associates involved in the counterfeit bearing racket.

–IANS

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