Patna, Nov 14 — Despite the complete prohibition on alcohol in Bihar, liquor smugglers continue to devise innovative ways to evade police checks.
In a startling incident, Begusarai police seized 216 litres of Indian made foreign liquor from a Scorpio SUV bearing official-looking government inscriptions, including 'Government of Bihar', 'DCLR Bakhri', and 'District Administration'.
Three people, including the driver, have been arrested in connection with the seizure.
The incident took place at Panhas Chowk under the Lohiyanagar police station area on Friday night.
According to a police press release and Sadar SDPO-I Prashant Kumar on Saturday, the police received a tip-off about a suspicious Scorpio carrying a consignment of liquor.
The information was relayed through DIG Shailesh Kumar Sinha.
Acting on the instructions of SP Manish, a joint team comprising personnel from Lohiyanagar police station and the District Intelligence Unit (DIU) established a checkpoint at Panhas Chowk and intercepted the vehicle.
During the search, police recovered 216 litres of foreign-made liquor packed in 25 cartons.
The vehicle, bearing registration number BR09PA2905, was seized, and all three occupants were arrested.
The most striking aspect of the seizure was the use of official-looking inscriptions on the vehicle.
The front displayed 'Government of Bihar' and 'DCLR Bakhri', while the rear carried a 'District Administration' sign.
The apparent use of government designations to avoid police scrutiny has raised questions about the modus operandi of the smuggling network.
The arrested accused have been identified as Anand Kumar, son of Prayag Singh and a resident of Jinedpur village under Muffasil police station, and Satyam Kumar, son of Shivshankar Rai, and Bittu Kumar, son of Pravin Rai, both residents of Sikandarpur Rajauda.
Sadar SDPO-I Prashant Kumar said the police acted promptly on the information received from the DIG and successfully intercepted the vehicle.
Preliminary questioning indicated that the Scorpio was arriving from outside the area.
All three arrested men are residents of the Muffasil police station area in Begusarai.
Police are interrogating the accused to establish the source of the liquor, its intended destination and the possible involvement of other members of the smuggling network.
Investigators are also examining who arranged the government-related inscriptions on the Scorpio, why they were displayed and whether the vehicle was deliberately disguised as an official administrative vehicle to escape police checks.
The actual ownership of the vehicle is also being verified.