Pune: Excise Department Seizes Illicit Liquor Worth ₹76.55 Lakhs From Paud – Mangaon Road 

Pune, Sept 2: In a significant operation conducted ahead of the upcoming Ganesh Festival, the Pune Regional Flying Squad of the State Excise Department seized illicit liquor worth ₹76.55 lakhs in Mulshi taluka. The operation took place in Adarwadi village near Hotel Shailesh on the Paud-Managaon road.

The seized goods included 33,600 sealed bottles (700 boxes) of 180 ml Polish Pride Premium Collection Reserve Whiskey, manufactured in Goa. This brand of liquor is legally permitted for sale only within Goa. The confiscated items were found in a brown six-wheeler Tata Motors tempo (vehicle number MH-03-DV 3716) along with a mobile phone, totaling a value of ₹76,55,500.

The driver, Zulfekar alias Zulfekar Tajali Chaudhary (age 50) from Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh, was arrested on the spot. A case has been registered against him under various sections of the Maharashtra Prohibition Act, 1949.

This operation was carried out under the instructions of Sagar Dhomkar, Deputy Commissioner of the State Excise Department, Pune Division. The team included Sub-Inspectors Viraj Mane, Atul Patil, Dheeraj Saste, along with constables Pratap Kadam, Satish Pondhe, Anil Thorat, Shashikant Bhat, Rahul Taralkar, and female constable Usha Ware. Further investigation is being led by Sub-Inspector Viraj Mane, according to Pune Regional Flying Squad Inspector Narendra Thorat.