AHMEDABAD: Gujarat Police have arrested a head constable from from Petland in Anand district for stashing foreign liquor in his house. However, he is not the only policeman to have been busted for playing bartender to a local bootlegger. Anand Local Crime Branch (LCB) police received a tip-off identifying that Mohsiniya Liaqatiya, also known as L K Malek, from Kalal Peepal in Petlad village, orchestrated the delivery of Indian-made foreign liquor to Police Head Constable Sunil Makwana’s residence in Rangaipura, Panchvati Park, located on Petlad-Sunav Road. Acting on the tip-off, the LCB police raided the residence and detained Police Official Sunil Makwana. A thorough search uncovered 240 bottles of Indian-made foreign liquor, valued at ₹3.63 lahks, stashed in a concealed box under the stairs, a plastic barrel beneath the iron staircase leading to the roof, and beside a bed in an upstairs room. According to sources, arrested police constable Sunil Makwana admitted during questioning that “Bootlegger Mohsiniya Liaqatia’s men came to my house late at night on December 22 in a white Swift car. They asked me to store the liquor for two to three days to avoid suspicion. Since they are my good friends, I agreed and allowed the liquor to be kept at my house.” Following his statement, police have filed a prohibition case against Makwana, Mohsiniya Liaqatia Malek, and others involved in supplying the liquor. In dry Gujarat, where prohibition laws strictly ban alcohol, incidents of police officials getting entangled in liquor-related offenses are mounting.Just this November, a deputy superintendent of police (DySP) with the State Reserve Police (SRP) was nabbed under the Gujarat Prohibition Act. The officer was found heavily drunk and in possession of country-made liquor on the Morbi-Kutch highway on November 3. Earlier this year, in July 2024, a Crime Investigation Department (CID) officer was caught aiding a smuggler attempting to traffic liquor in Gujarat’s Kutch district. The case raised eyebrows, highlighting the complicity of those tasked with upholding the law in facilitating such illegal activities. In a shocking breach of duty last year, five policemen, including an assistant sub-inspector (ASI), were arrested in Gujarat’s Mahisagar district. The group was caught stealing 125 seized liquor bottles and 15 table fans, worth Rs 1.97 lakh, from a police station. These incidents underscore the growing challenge of corruption within the ranks of law enforcement in the dry state.
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