News Analysis India

Tag: liquor ban

  • Seized liquor stolen from police station in Gujarat, 15 people including constable booked

    Express News Service

    AHMEDABAD: A large quantity of seized liquor was stolen from Piplod police station in Dahod, Gujarat, a state with a strict ban on liquor.

    A total of 15 people, including a police constable from the same police station and seven GRD jawans have been charged in connection with the incident.

    The State Monitoring Cell (SMC) of Gujarat Police confiscated 916 boxes of liquor containing 28,336 bottles worth Rs 46.42 lakh from a truck parked near a hotel in the district on Sunday. At the Piplod police station, an offence was registered for the same. The seized liquor was moved to the police station’sevidence room.

    After some time, the Superintendent of Police. (SP) Rajdeep Sinh Jhala of Dahod received information that some liquor boxes had gone missing from the Piplod police station. So they checked at the police station and discovered that 23 liquor boxes were missing.

    SP Rajdeep Sinh Jhala told The New Indian Express, “I received a video where it shows a petrol pump near the police station, separated by a five-foot wall. In the video, there is a person standing between them, placing a box on the bike from the police station side. A uniformed police officer was also visible in the same video.”

    “We therefore made the decision to examine the stock at the Piplod police station, which we had seized and moved to the evidence room of the station on Sunday. Along with other officials, I arrived at the police station, to verify the stock, and it was found that 23 liquor boxes and 10 bottles from the stock were actually missing.”

    The incident of box theft was reported at Piplod police station. Both the CCTV footage from the police station cameras and those from a nearby petrol pump were carefully examined. The footage revealed that the crates containing liquor were taken one by one and handed over to individuals on the other side of the police station’s compound wall. An auto-rickshaw and a car were used as means of transport for the stolen alcohol.

    “The heist was committed by 15 people, including a policeman who is working as a driver, seven Gramm Rakshak Dal (GRD) Jawans who are working under the same police station, one volunteer from the traffic brigade, and six others have been booked,” SP said.

    “Ten people have been arrested until Thursday,” said Assistant Superintendent of Police, Limkheda Vishakha Jain.

    In July 2023, a similar incident took place in the Gir Somnath district of Saurashtra. It involved the arrest of a police constable and three guards of the gram Rakshak dal (GRD) from the Sutrapada police station. They were allegedly caught selling a seized liquor consignment that was obtained during avehicle-checking operation.

    AHMEDABAD: A large quantity of seized liquor was stolen from Piplod police station in Dahod, Gujarat, a state with a strict ban on liquor.

    A total of 15 people, including a police constable from the same police station and seven GRD jawans have been charged in connection with the incident.

    The State Monitoring Cell (SMC) of Gujarat Police confiscated 916 boxes of liquor containing 28,336 bottles worth Rs 46.42 lakh from a truck parked near a hotel in the district on Sunday. At the Piplod police station, an offence was registered for the same. The seized liquor was moved to the police station’s
    evidence room.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    After some time, the Superintendent of Police. (SP) Rajdeep Sinh Jhala of Dahod received information that some liquor boxes had gone missing from the Piplod police station. So they checked at the police station and discovered that 23 liquor boxes were missing.

    SP Rajdeep Sinh Jhala told The New Indian Express, “I received a video where it shows a petrol pump near the police station, separated by a five-foot wall. In the video, there is a person standing between them, placing a box on the bike from the police station side. A uniformed police officer was also visible in the same video.”

    “We therefore made the decision to examine the stock at the Piplod police station, which we had seized and moved to the evidence room of the station on Sunday. Along with other officials, I arrived at the police station, to verify the stock, and it was found that 23 liquor boxes and 10 bottles from the stock were actually missing.”

    The incident of box theft was reported at Piplod police station. Both the CCTV footage from the police station cameras and those from a nearby petrol pump were carefully examined. The footage revealed that the crates containing liquor were taken one by one and handed over to individuals on the other side of the police station’s compound wall. An auto-rickshaw and a car were used as means of transport for the stolen alcohol.

    “The heist was committed by 15 people, including a policeman who is working as a driver, seven Gramm Rakshak Dal (GRD) Jawans who are working under the same police station, one volunteer from the traffic brigade, and six others have been booked,” SP said.

    “Ten people have been arrested until Thursday,” said Assistant Superintendent of Police, Limkheda Vishakha Jain.

    In July 2023, a similar incident took place in the Gir Somnath district of Saurashtra. It involved the arrest of a police constable and three guards of the gram Rakshak dal (GRD) from the Sutrapada police station. They were allegedly caught selling a seized liquor consignment that was obtained during a
    vehicle-checking operation.

  • BJP attacks Chhattisgarh CM Bhupesh Baghel govt on ‘liquor ban’

    Express News Service

    RAIPUR: One of the key poll promises by the ruling Congress ahead of the Assembly polls 2018 was on liquor ban, which is now rumbling politically in Chhattisgarh with the opposition BJP gearing-up to sharpen its attack on the Bhupesh Baghel government. The elections in the state are due next year. 

    While the opposition has been consistently demanding total prohibition in the state, the Congress is not expressing any disinclination, but countered that the process on liquor ban will not be done like the demonetisation. It will be done on the basis of the observations compiled by the three committees constituted by the government. The Congress maintained that it will review the possibilities of closing down liquor sales.

    The state health minister T S Singhdeo recently expressed reservations over Chhattisgarh likely becoming a complete ‘dry state’. “Liquor can be banned in around 61 development blocks but imposing prohibition in the tribal areas may not be possible,” he said.Political observers believed that liquor ban promise by Congress party apparently won the appreciation from the women who constitute nearly 50 per cent of the voters in the state.

    Three committees comprised experts, social workers and legislators were formed to study the prospect of prohibition in the state. “Based on observations of the committees the government will initiate action. We have corresponded with four states that imposed liquor ban regarding study tours, but have not received any response so far. The process will begin after we receive the reply,” said Satyanarayan Sharma, who heads a political committee on liquor prohibition. 

    During the last three years and a half, only three meetings of the committee were held.The BJP Mahila Morcha has launched a major campaign against the state government on liquor ban and crime against women.

    “There will be a month-long programme right from the village level to district across the state. On November 3, the Morcha will organise a mega rally that will see the participation of one lakh women,” said Saroj Pandey, BJP MP.

    RAIPUR: One of the key poll promises by the ruling Congress ahead of the Assembly polls 2018 was on liquor ban, which is now rumbling politically in Chhattisgarh with the opposition BJP gearing-up to sharpen its attack on the Bhupesh Baghel government. The elections in the state are due next year. 

    While the opposition has been consistently demanding total prohibition in the state, the Congress is not expressing any disinclination, but countered that the process on liquor ban will not be done like the demonetisation. It will be done on the basis of the observations compiled by the three committees constituted by the government. The Congress maintained that it will review the possibilities of closing down liquor sales.

    The state health minister T S Singhdeo recently expressed reservations over Chhattisgarh likely becoming a complete ‘dry state’. “Liquor can be banned in around 61 development blocks but imposing prohibition in the tribal areas may not be possible,” he said.Political observers believed that liquor ban promise by Congress party apparently won the appreciation from the women who constitute nearly 50 per cent of the voters in the state.

    Three committees comprised experts, social workers and legislators were formed to study the prospect of prohibition in the state. “Based on observations of the committees the government will initiate action. We have corresponded with four states that imposed liquor ban regarding study tours, but have not received any response so far. The process will begin after we receive the reply,” said Satyanarayan Sharma, who heads a political committee on liquor prohibition. 

    During the last three years and a half, only three meetings of the committee were held.The BJP Mahila Morcha has launched a major campaign against the state government on liquor ban and crime against women.

    “There will be a month-long programme right from the village level to district across the state. On November 3, the Morcha will organise a mega rally that will see the participation of one lakh women,” said Saroj Pandey, BJP MP.

  • People of Bihar to take oath on November 26 that they won’t consume liquor: Nitish

    Speaking to reporters, Kumar said the prohibition is being strictly enforced in the state and directions have been issued not to spare anyone, including government employees.

  • Uma Bharti to launch statewide campaign against liquor and drugs in Madhya Pradesh

    Express News Service
    BHOPAL: Twelve days after demanding a total ban on liquor in all BJP-ruled states, former union minister and BJP leader Uma Bharti has announced that she will start a drive against alcohol and drugs across Madhya Pradesh from March 8 – the International Women’s Day.

    And joining Bharti in the statewide drive against alcohol and drugs from March 8 will be Khushboo, a young woman from MP, who was with Bharti during her stay on the banks of river Ganga in Uttarakhand in 2020.

    “I’ve found Khushboo, an ideal partner for the statewide campaign de-addiction drive. She is from MP only and had joined me during my Ganga-Prawas. Seeing her commitment and courage for sacred causes, I had named her Ganga Bharti during the Ganga Prawas only,” Bharti tweeted on Wednesday.

    “Now I’ve asked Ganga (the young woman from MP) to prepare for launching the de-addiction campaign on March 8. She will tell you details about the campaign five days later,” Bharti tweeted.

    The saffron-clad firebrand leader’s announcement to launch a statewide campaign against drugs and liquor is being touted as her first indication of a return to active politics.

    Importantly, a few months back, Bharti had announced that she would return to electoral politics by contesting 2024 Lok Sabha polls. She had not contested the 2019 general elections citing health reasons.

    Bharti who had served as CM from 2003 to a large part of 2005, had on January 22 demanded total ban on liquor in all BJP-ruled states in the wake of the poisonous liquor tragedy which killed 28 villagers in Morena district of MP.

    The former MP CM’s announcement to launch statewide campaign against alcohol and drugs comes amid speculations about the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government planning to sell liquor online and change the excise policy to boost revenues.

    Around a fortnight back, the ruling saffron party in MP had appeared in a divided house in the wake of the Morena hooch tragedy. While the home minister Narottam Mishra had advocated opening new licensed liquor vends near remote villages to check illicit liquor trade, the CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan had denied about possibility of opening of new liquor vends in the state. At the same time, Bharti had demanded total liquor prohibition in all BJP-ruled states, including MP.

    Later, controversy erupted over the state’s excise commissioner sending letters to all district collectors, seeking proposals to open new liquor vends in their respective districts. With the opposition Congress accusing the BJP government of attempting to turn MP into a liquor state, the letter was withdrawn by the excise commissioner. 

  • Liquor ban: Not in favour of imposing anything, says Adityanath

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: A day after the Uttar Pradesh government made obtaining license mandatory for buying, transporting or possessing over six litres of alcohol, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanth on Monday indicated he was not in favour of forcefully imposing ban on liquor in the state.

    He, however, made it clear that his government will take all steps which are in the interest of Uttar Pradesh.

    According to a new excise policy, purchase, transport or private possession of alcohol in the state is limited to six litres.

    To keep liquor above the prescribed limit, one has to obtain license from the excise department.

    The chief minister told reporters that this step will “check liquor smuggling and is in overall interest of the state”.

    When asked whether state government has plans to make Uttar Pradesh liquor-free, he said, “We cannot forcefully impose something but whatever will be in the interest of the state we will take those steps.

    ” The Uttar Pradesh government has allowed sale of select types of alcohol in shopping malls.

    Earlier, sale of liquor was allowed only at certified model shops in the state.

    Liquor is banned in Bihar, the neighbouring state of Uttar Pradesh.

    There is restriction on sale of liquor in Gujarat as well.