In this poll season, an Election Commission official in Karnataka informed that the state had seen the highest seizure of liquor worth Rs. 174 crores from any other state. According to the data, worth Rs. 174 crore of liquor from Karnataka followed by Rs. 51 crore from W.Bengal, Rs. 41 crore from Rajasthan, Rs. 35 crore in Uttar Pradesh, and Rs. 32 crore from Bihar have been seized.
In Karnataka beer accounted for Rs. 135 crore seizure and the other were IML with toddy. The excise department alone seized Rs. 173 crore of liquor and the remaining by the police. Bangalore Rural, Dakshin Kannada, Hassan, and Mysore Rural districts report huge hauls.
Venkatesh Kumar, additional chief election officer said that Karnataka state’s haul is more than in states like Goa, Delhi, West Bengal, and Rajasthan where liquor consumption is overall higher. During polls, after cash and freebies are used to lure voters, come Liquor to attract them, he added. He further said that the excise department has taken rigorous measures to control illegal liquor movement across Karnataka during polls time. Excise Commissioner J.Ravishankar said that the department data showed that over 24 thousand cases have been registered and 25051 people arrested in liquor haul cases. Through the Excise department’s detailed vigilance and tracking system liquor hauls can be easily traced to their origin. Owing to the increased vigilance and constant support of the Chief Election Officer this is possible. We have sealed the border of Karnataka with Tamil Nadu as Tamil Nadu is going to the polls in the first phase.
It is pertinent to mention that in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the state of K’taka seized Rs. 38 crore worth of liquor.