Liquor Worth Rs 1.2 Crore Seized In Gujarat, 2 Rajasthan Men Arrested
Gujarat police seize liquor worth Rs 1.2 crore.
The Gujarat Police's State Monitoring Cell (SMC) seized Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) and other property worth more than Rs 1.20 crore during a raid on National Highway 27 in Banaskantha district. The operation was conducted beneath the Un village overbridge on the Thara-Randhanpur stretch of the highway in Thara taluka, following specific information about an alleged liquor consignment being transported into Gujarat.
Acting on the information, the SMC team intercepted a truck suspected of carrying liquor in violation of Gujarat's prohibition laws. Police recovered 16,349 bottles of IMFL from the vehicle, with the liquor valued at Rs 1,05,12,451. The truck, estimated to be worth Rs 15 lakh, was also seized during the operation.
Other items recovered included two mobile phones valued at Rs 10,000, Rs 210 in cash, covering cloth, a rope, 150 bundles of waste cloth, a driving licence and a FASTag. The total value of the liquor and other seized property was estimated at Rs 1,20,22,661, making the operation one of the larger liquor seizures reported by the SMC in recent weeks.
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Two Rajasthan residents were arrested at the spot. Police identified them as truck driver Omprakash Kakal and cleaner Jitendrakumar Kakal, both residents of Aadrsh Lukhu village in Dhorimanna taluka of Rajasthan's Barmer district. An offence has been registered under various provisions of the Gujarat Prohibition Act and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita in connection with the seizure.
Investigators have also named several other accused who are wanted in the case. They include alleged liquor supplier Harish Kukana of Sodiyar village in Barmer district, the truck owner, an unidentified person suspected to be the intended receiver in Bhuj and another unidentified individual allegedly involved in loading the consignment in Ludhiana. Police said efforts are underway to identify and apprehend others linked to the alleged supply chain.
The latest operation is part of a series of seizures carried out by the SMC against suspected interstate liquor smuggling networks in Gujarat. In June, the unit seized IMFL and an SUV worth Rs 16.72 lakh near Dehgam and booked six accused. In July, it recovered IMFL valued at Rs 6.28 lakh during a raid in Gandhinagar district, with the total value of the seized property estimated at Rs 16.39 lakh.
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