Chhola Mandir police carries out action against illicit liquor traders:Seizes Rs 1.3 lakh worth of liquor stock during raids at 2 locations; one held

The Chhola Mandir police of Bhopal, continuing their intensified campaign against the trade of illicit liquor, carried out two major operations on Tuesday night, dealing a heavy blow to bootleggers active in the area, the police said on Thursday. According to the police, liquor worth Rs 1.29 lakh was seized during the raids. 19 cartons of country-made liquor seized during first raid Chhola Mandir police station in-charge Saraswati Tiwari said that acting on a tip-off, a police team patrolling near Timber Market reached an abandoned structure beside Sanyam Grover’s timber yard. Upon inspection, officers found 19 cartons of country liquor packed in khaki-coloured boxes lying near a broken wall. Out of these, three cartons contained “Desi Madira Plain” and sixteen cartons contained “Desi Madira Masala”. Each carton had 50 quarter bottles, totalling 950 quarters (approximately 171 litres) of illicit liquor valued at Rs 93,500. The liquor bottles bore labels of Vidhyachal Distilleries Pvt. Ltd., located in Pilukhedi area of Narsinghgarh in Rajgarh district. Samples were collected from each carton in the presence of witnesses. Since no suspect was found at the spot, the seized items were sealed and deposited in the police station’s storeroom. A case has been registered against unidentified accused, and investigations are ongoing. Woman held with 7 cartons of illicit liquor in second operation In another operation conducted on the same day, the police apprehended Bulbul Sauda (30), a resident of Shankar Nagar in Chandbadi, based on confidential information. During the search, officers recovered seven cartons, six sealed and one open, containing 325 quarter bottles (58.5 litres) of Desi Madira Masala liquor, valued at Rs 35,750. When questioned, Sauda admitted that the liquor belonged to her and her sister Sushma Kuchbandiya, who is currently absconding. The accused failed to produce any valid documents for storing or selling liquor. A case has been registered, and efforts to locate the co-accused are underway, as per police.