Despite raid, hooch trade continues at Lambi village

Archit Watts

Tribune News Service

Lambi, June 24

Despite a massive raid conducted by the Excise Department sleuths and the police at Kattianwali village in Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal’s home constituency Lambi yesterday, the bootleggers continue to prepare illegal liquor.

During a visit by a team of reporters today, the illegal distilleries were found running along a water channel in the village. Taking the benefit of the wild growth in the area, those preparing the hooch, however, managed to escape.

Notably, when a person goes to this particular location, he can smell the liquor brewing there. However, the police in the last one year have failed to arrest even a single person involved in this illegal activity, which has caused huge losses to the liquor vends situated in the neighbouring area.

This village is allegedly known as the “illegal liquor den”.

However, repeated attempts to contact Indermohan Singh, Assistant Excise and Taxation Commissioner (AETC), Muktsar, and Inderjit Singh, Excise and Taxation Officer (ETO), Muktsar, proved futile.

Gursewak Singh, SHO, Kabarwala police station, said, “We keep on conducting raids at the location and will go there again tomorrow morning to keep a check on this illegal activity. The people involved in this trade are many and have criminal backgrounds.”

The Congress leaders have many times accused the SAD leaders of this area of running this illegal trade and demanded strict action. Further, a senior Congress leader of Lambi had even publicly named a senior SAD leader of running this trade during the Congress’ June 18 protest at Lambi.