Chandigarh tops in illegal liquor smuggling

The city of Chandigarh, known for its beauty, has unfortunately become a hub for illegal liquor smuggling in recent years. Illegal liquor is being transported from Chandigarh to neighboring states like Rajasthan, Gujarat, and others, facilitated by fake e-way bills. Despite efforts from the Excise Department and Chandigarh UT Administration, the illegal trade persists, resulting in significant revenue losses for the administration.

Evidence suggests collusion between the illegal liquor mafia, the Excise Department, and the police. Last year, multiple instances of police involvement in liquor smuggling were uncovered. Several trucks carrying liquor with forged documents were apprehended in locations like Panchkula, and Narnaul in Haryana, and Rajasthan. Just this Monday, the Chandigarh Police’s Operation Cell seized illegal liquor worth Rs 80 lakh, including 640 crates of English liquor/wine and 2468 crates of beer, leading to the arrest of four individuals. Routine checks behind a liquor shop in Sector 31 also resulted in the seizure of 54 crates of liquor (38 beer crates, 16 whisky crates) valued at about 2 lakhs from a pickup lacking proper permits. In another incident, 284 bottles of liquor without holograms were confiscated from a shop in Sector 28-D, including various brands such as Grant whisky, Red Label whisky, Jameson whisky, Ballantine whisky, Kettle One vodka, and Jack Daniels (JD). Despite efforts, illegal liquor smuggling in Chandigarh persists. The frequent rotation of collectors within the Excise Department, occurring every two months, hasn’t improved the situation.

The Chandigarh administration’s decision to assign responsibility for controlling illegal liquor smuggling to the Director of the Education Department hasn’t yielded significant results either.

Recently, the Chandigarh Police, under the supervision of DSP North East, seized 70 boxes of illegal liquor from a Mahindra pickup during special naka checking near Kishangarh Chowk. The driver, identified as Ramu Kumar from village Nisihara, post office Tehsil Bakhri, district Begu Sarai, Bihar, was arrested, and a case was registered against him at the IT Park Police Station. The illegal liquor was successfully seized.