Imported liquor smuggling: Sector 36 resident kingpin of racket

Gaurav Kanthwal

Tribune News Service

Zirakpur, October 1

A Sector 36 resident and US citizen, Anterpreet Singh Sidhu, has been reportedly identified as the kingpin of the illicit liquor and beer smuggling racket busted jointly by the Punjab Excise Department and the Mohali police yesterday.

Naresh Dubey, Joint Excise Commissioner, Punjab, said, “Sidhu is currently in India and will be nabbed soon. His house and office were raided, from where seizures have been made. Liquor and beer was likely being smuggled from Customs bonded warehouse in Noida. The complicity of warehouse officials has not been ruled out. We will conduct in-depth investigation.”

The police said Sidhu was a businessman and also dealt in illicit liquor. The process of issuing a look-out notice for him had been initiated. “Certain quantity of the haul confiscated yesterday has exceeded the expiry date,” they disclosed.

Excise officials said the seized brands of liquor and beer were available in India. The demand for Spanish and Romanian beer has shot up in India in the recent past.

Also read: Foreign beer, liquor smuggling racket unearthed, 2 arrested in Zirakpur

Sources said the racket was operating for the past one year and the suspects were allegedly smuggling bottled-in-origin (BIO) brands and imported liquor to the godowns in Lalru and Khizrabad, evading excise duty and other levies. It has not been ascertained yet whether the liquor and beer was being smuggled for private parties or for hotels and restaurants.

On Thursday, the police and the Excise Department had claimed to have busted an organised module of beer and liquor smuggling racket in the district. As many as 201 cartons of imported liquor and 1,400 cartons of beer were seized.

Two suspects, Malerkotla resident Vishwajeet Singh Dhindsa and truck driver, Somu, were arrested.

According to excise officials, the seized liquor and beer, including brands Senior Boke and Moller, are worth around Rs20 lakh.

A case under Sections 61-1-14 of the Excise Act and Sections 420, 468 and 120-B of the IPC was registered at the Zirakpur police station.