MP Excise Team Seizes Liquor Consignment Worth ₹70 Lakh En Route To Gujarat; Truck Driver Held

Indore (Madhya Pradesh): The excise department in Madhya Pradesh seized around 500 boxes of whisky worth Rs 70 lakh from a container truck allegedly bound for Gujarat, a 'dry' state, and arrested its driver, an official said on Friday.

The truck was impounded on the Indore bypass late Thursday night after the driver failed to produce valid transit permits for the whisky boxes marked for sale only in Chandigarh, assistant district excise officer Manoj Kumar Agrawal said.

The driver has been arrested and is being questioned, he said, adding that the seized whisky was worth Rs 70 lakh.

Another official said the consignment was suspected to have been destined for Gujarat, a 'dry' state where liquor is prohibited, through illegal channels.

Liquor smugglers often change drivers and routes while transporting contraband to evade police and excise checks, the official said, adding that a detailed investigation was underway.

Drunk Driver Held With ₹90 Lakh Liquor Consignment In Indore; Illegal Route Under Probe

A similar case of liquor Consignment seized was reported on August 3, when a drunk truck driver was arrested while illegally carrying 1,500 boxes of liquor worth around Rs 90 lakh in market value during a vehicle checking drive at Bada Ganpati Square, police said on Monday.

According to Malharganj police station in-charge Neeraj Birthare, the action was taken while police were conducting checks with a breath analyser to catch drunken drivers.