Pune: As part of increased vigilance following the enforcement of the election code of conduct, authorities have been conducting vehicle inspections across the Maval Assembly constituency.

On Thursday (October 24) evening, a stationary surveillance team seized ₹17.75 lakh in cash from a car near the Urse toll plaza, within the jurisdiction of Shirgaon Police Station.

The driver, identified as Piyush Jakhotia (34), was detained following the discovery of the cash.

His vehicle, traveling from Khopoli to Pune, was intercepted for routine inspection when officers uncovered the unaccounted money.

During questioning, Jakhodia claimed that he was involved in the textile business and was en route to Pune for Diwali shopping. However, discrepancies in his statements prompted officials to seize the cash.

The confiscated amount has since been transferred to the Income Tax Department for further investigation.

Earlier, a sum of approximately ₹13 lakh was seized by a static surveillance team near the Grape Research Center near Manjari.

The cash was found inside a vehicle during a routine check on the Pune-Solapur highway. The incident took place as part of a surveillance operation conducted to monitor vehicle movements in the region.

Prior to this action, a sum of five crore rupees was seized by rural police during a routine vehicle inspection at Khed Shivapur toll plaza on the Mumbai-Bengaluru bypass on Monday (October 21) evening.

The seized cash amount was later handed over to the Income Tax Department for further investigation. The cash, found in a car, was counted in the presence of witnesses. The Election Commission, along with the police and tax authorities, will be probing the source and purpose of the money.