1,600 cartons of illegal liquor seized.in Sirsa; former sarpanch among 5 arrested

In a major crackdown, the Excise Department and the police in Sirsa uncovered a large network involved in liquor smuggling on Friday night. During a raid in the Rupana Bishnoian area, the authorities seized over 1,600 cartons of illegal liquor from an animal warehouse. Among those arrested was former Sarpanch Bansilal, along with four others.

The operation was carried out after Excise Inspector Surendra Kataria and his team received a tip-off. Acting on the information, officials conducted a raid, during which they also confiscated two trucks and a pickup vehicle loaded with illegal liquor. Additionally, they discovered liquor manufacturing machines, fake holograms, and counterfeit labels, which were being used to make fake liquor appear genuine.

During questioning, the arrested suspects Bansilal, Anoop, Vikas, Arun, and Ramshankar revealed that they smuggled liquor from Punjab and distributed it in Haryana and Gujarat. The investigation further revealed that they had already sent multiple consignments to Gujarat, where liquor was banned, making it a high-demand market for illegal alcohol.

Superintendent of Police Vikrant Bhushan stated that the excise and police team found a massive stockpile of liquor at the scene, including well-known brands such as Imperial Blue, Royal Stag, Royal Challenge, McDowell’s, Tuborg, and Kingfisher Ultra Max. In addition to the liquor, the police seized 40 liters of spirit, 55 kg of chemicals used in liquor production, over 45,000 bottle caps, 40 rolls of fake holograms, and more than 1 lakh counterfeit labels.

The initial investigation suggested that the gang repackaged fake liquor to make it look like original branded alcohol. They used counterfeit labels, holograms and bottle caps to mislead customers and expand their illegal business. The gang stored liquor in Haryana before smuggling it into Gujarat, taking advantage of the high demand due to prohibition laws in the state. The illegal operation allowed them to make huge profits.

The police are now searching for other members of the gang and investigating possible connections to larger organised crime syndicates. The officials believe the raid has delivered a major blow to the illegal liquor trade in the region. The arrested suspects have been charged under the Haryana Excise Act, IPC sections, and BNS, and further investigations are underway.