Pune: A head-on collision took place near Malthan village in Shirur Tehsil of Pune District on Thursday afternoon. Preliminary reports told the Pune Rural police that the driver of one of the cars was drunk. However, an in-depth probe into the incident has uncovered that smuggling of illicit country-made liquor was ongoing in the car.
The incident happened on the Ashtavinayak Highway in Shirur Tehsil. Hand-kilned, country-made liquor was being transported in one of the vehicles. There were no fatalities reported in the accident.
Police said that a car heading towards Malthan collided head-on with another car travelling towards Ranjangaon. Both vehicles sustained heavy damage. Passengers Rajendra Darekar, Balasaheb Darekar, Vishnu Gosavi, Suresh Satpute, and Balasaheb Said sustained minor injuries and were immediately admitted to the Malthan Rural Hospital for treatment.
Following the accident, alert villagers rushed to the spot, moved both vehicles to the side of the road, and cleared the traffic. Meanwhile, the intoxicated driver of the car heading toward Ranjangaon attempted to flee, but villagers caught him and handed him over to the Shirur Police.
Upon inspecting the scene, police officers found 15 cans, each with a 30-litre capacity, inside the Hyundai i20 car. These cans were filled with a total of 450 litres of ready-to-consume illegal country liquor. The police seized the vehicle along with the contraband and conducted a panchnama.
A case has been registered against the drunk driver, identified as Anil Chandya Chauhan (resident of Loni Kalbhor). There are reports that the angry crowd thrashed the driver after he gave evasive answers during questioning; however, police haven't confirmed it yet.
The fact that such liquor smuggling is happening in broad daylight just days before the Pune Zilla Parishad and Panchayat Samiti elections in Pune District has raised serious questions regarding the administration’s oversight. Citizens are now strongly demanding immediate and stringent action against such illegal trades.
