An MP police inspector's death while trying to stop a truck with liquor allegedly bound for Gujarat has renewed focus on the illicit inter-state tradeA police inspector in Madhya Pradesh’s Dewas district was, on the intervening night on November 2-3, killed by a truck laden with liquor suspected to be headed for dry state Gujarat.Inspector Dilip Puri, in charge of Khategaon police station, had apparently asked the truck’s driver to have the vehicle inspected. According to the police, the driver attempted to flee with the truck and Puri got run over.The incident has brought renewed focus on how liquor business in Madhya Pradesh caters to illicit demand in Gujarat, a state where prohibition laws are in force since the 1960s.Police sources said a tip-off had been received about a truck with liquor heading for Gujarat.
Puri and his team found the truck parked at a dhaba. Asked to get off and enable inspection of the cargo, the driver allegedly tried to drive away.
Puri, who was standing beside the truck, came under the rear wheels. He was taken to a hospital in Khategaon and died around 4 am on November 3.
He had suffered excessive bleeding and internal injuries.The driver, identified as Ajju aka Gajendra, is a resident of Alirajpur in western Madhya Pradesh. After fleeing, he abandoned the truck some 5 km from the incident spot.
A hunt is on for him.Investigations showed the liquor had been picked up from a store in Timarni in Harda district. The police arrested Rahul Jaiswal, co-partner in the liquor store, from Indore airport on arrival from New Delhi.Jaiswal told the police his business has three more partners—Ahmedabad-based Mohin Jaiswal, Patendra Jaiswal in Barwani and Manish Jaiswal in Indore.
The police also arrested Vijay Rao, allegedly a liquor supplier to Gujarat, in Indore besides Keram Singh, who would allegedly organise transport of the liquor consignments.Jaiswal is reportedly a former Youth Congress district president of Harda. He, Rao and Singh have been booked under the Excise Act.
The absconding driver faces murder charges.Madhya Pradesh has a long border with Gujarat along Jhabua+ and Alirajpur districts. It is an open secret that liquor stores in Madhya Pradesh along the inter-state border supply to Gujarat.
This is also evident from the fact that the excise revenue of bordering districts is far higher than any district with comparable population in Madhya Pradesh. Ironically, the state government earns excise revenue from sale of liquor that is eventually smuggled into Gujarat.The Madhya Pradesh government has announced a job on compassionate grounds for the wife of the deceased police inspector and a compensation of Rs 1 crore.
Puri’s death is the second alcohol-related incident in Dewas district in weeks. Last month, illicit liquor left 10 people dead in two villages.
The action that followed saw the transfer of the district magistrate and superintendent of police.Subscribe to India Today Magazine- Ends