The State Excise Department has busted a liquor adulteration racket in Mumbai. It is learnt that the racket was operating in Chembur area.The illegal operation involved tampering with sealed alcohol bottles, putting public health and safety at risk. According to officials, employees associated with a liquor trading business were found to be manipulating alcohol bottles by extracting a portion of the original contents and refilling them with water. The tampered bottles were then resealed and sold in the market, deceiving customers.
The illegal activity was carried out by using a small pipe to pierce the top of sealed bottles, carefully drawing out half of the liquor and replacing it with water. The removed liquor was then reportedly sold separately for profit, effectively doubling their earnings from a single bottle. Officials have seized a stock whose market value is not made public yet. At least four people involved in the racket were interrogated.
Further details are awaited. An investigation is underway. The authorities seized Indian-Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) and bottling equipment valued at Rs 61.46 lakh, Hindustan Times reported. The crackdown followed credible intelligence received by the department. Acting swiftly, officers raided a premises near Hotel PM Palace in Penkarpada, Mira Road East. There, they apprehended Ramkesh Sitaram Gupta, who was found with illicit IMFL stock worth Rs 1.25 lakh.