Vikas Malu, the Delhi-based owner of a pan masala brand, was arrested in a five-star hotel in south Calcutta on Tuesday while he was having dinner with family and friends. He had allegedly evaded excise of about Rs 2.5 crore.

Officers from the central excise department and Alipore police station conducted the joint raid. The 35-year-old was flown to New Delhi on Wednesday and would be produced in Patiala House court on Thursday.

Malu’s factory near Ghaziabad churns out 12 lakh gutkha pouches per month apart from scented khaini, zafrani zarda and snacks, said police sources. “We surrounded Malu, who was absconding, while he was engrossed in conversation with his family members. He asked for an officer’s identity and then gave in,” said one of the officers in the team.