New Delhi, March 22 : The Delhi Police on Sunday stated it has unearthed an illegal LPG hoarding and black-marketing racket operating in the Mahipalpur area and arrested three persons in connection with the case.

During the operation, police recovered a total of 74 LPG cylinders, including 70 domestic and four commercial units, along with a Tata Ace Gold vehicle, weighing machines and gas transfer equipment used in the illegal trade.

The raid was carried out on Saturday by the Anti-Auto Theft Squad (AATS), which apprehended three accused identified as Krishna (33), Dinesh Sahu (46) and Mithilesh (39). According to officials, the trio, originally from Bihar, had been living in Delhi for the past 20â??25 years and had been engaged in illegal LPG supply activities in the Mahipalpur area for nearly three years.

Police said a dedicated team comprising SI Ram Pratap, ASI Vinod Kumar, HC Mohit, HC Bharat, HC Pradeep, HC Narendra and Constable Praveen Kumar, under the leadership of Inspector Ram Kumar and supervision of ACP (Operations) Sanghamitra, was working on specific intelligence inputs regarding illegal LPG operations in the area.

"On 21.03.2026, specific secret information was received regarding illegal hoarding of LPG cylinders at K-845, Mahipalpur, Delhi. Acting swiftly on the tip-off, the team conducted a raid at the said premises and apprehended three accused persons, namely Krishna, Dinesh Sahu and Mithilesh," officials said in a statement.

During the search, a large stock of LPG cylinders along with weighing machines and related equipment was recovered from the premises. The accused failed to produce any valid licence or authorisation for storing or trading LPG cylinders.

"During interrogation, the accused disclosed that they were involved in the illegal sale of LPG cylinders to local residents without bills or authorisation in order to earn higher profits. They used a Tata Ace Gold vehicle for transportation and had rented the premises for illegal storage. The accused were also transferring gas from multiple filled cylinders into empty cylinders using metal pipes to increase profit margins and manipulate supply," the officials added.

Police said the action is part of a broader crackdown against LPG hoarding in the national capital amid reports of a gas shortage.

In recent operations, thousands of cylinders have been seized from different locations, including 610 cylinders from Mundka and several others from Shakarpur.

Officials said the crackdown follows complaints that some distributors were allegedly diverting LPG cylinders for illegal sale in the black market.

/IANS