5 peddlers held with 1,400 litres of ENA smuggled from Haryana

Tribune News Service
Amritsar, December 11

The Excise Department and the Amritsar (rural) police arrested five persons and seized 1,400 litres of extra neutral alcohol (ENA is a primary raw material for making alcoholic beverages) on December 10.

Preliminary investigations revealed that the ENA was being smuggled from Haryana after the Punjab Government tightened noose around bootleggers following a hooch tragedy, which claimed more than 125 lives in Tarn Taran, Amritsar and Batala in July.

The accused have been identified as Kawaljit Singh of Cheeta Kalan, Akashdeep Singh of Meharbanpur, Harjit Singh alias, Jeeta of Rampur, Maan Singh of Meharbanpura village, and Kuldeep Singh of Mahal village.

The police said the Excise Department had got a tip off that the ENA was being smuggled from Haryana by the bootleggers for preparing spurious liquor and a few persons from Amritsar and Tarn Taran were involved in the nexus and transporting the same in various parts of the two border districts.

Working on the leads, cops intercepted a Mahindra pick up, which had seven drums of the ENA (200 litres each). The police also intercepted an SUV which was piloting the pick-up. Cops said the accused were sent on the police remand by the court.

A case under the Excise Act has been registered at Majitha police station. Further investigations were under progress to unearth the entire nexus.