Busted interstate liquor trafficking, 3,280-litre spirit seized at Surajpur

Last evening, Nurpur district police broke an interstate liquor scam and confiscated 82 40-litre plastic cans from a luxurious mansion in Surajpur, Indora subdivision of Kangra district, under Damtal police station authority.

The Nurpur SP Ashok Ratan-led police entered the residence and found spirit cans buried underground in the room after a tip. The cops took Rs 9.09 lakh cash from Surajpur village home owner Rakeshwar Singh.

The SP said police apprehended the accused and filed a Section 39(1) HP Excise Act charge against him. He said the accused was brought to court on Monday and placed in police custody to demonstrate his interstate link in acquiring and selling the recovered raw material. He said the early inquiry showed the accused bought spirit from a Pinjore, Haryana, producer or supplier.

According to information, one liter of spirit ferments into 4-5 litres of alcohol. Seized 3280-litre spirits may generate 16,000 liters of alcohol. “The arrested accused, who had hidden a huge quantity of spirit underground in this house, can supply raw material to hooch brewers outside the state,” a local liquor merchant stated.

The authorities believe the accused is a large stockist of illicit spirit and has an interstate network of unlawfully acquiring and delivering spirit to distilleries in neighboring states that ferment and distill fake booze.

“The Election Commission of India has issued clear guidelines to the police to conduct a thorough investigation and ascertain backward and forward tracing if such a major recovery of illicit material is made, and now the police will conduct a probe under the ECI guidelines,” the SP added.