RAIPUR: In a significant development, the Chhattisgarh government has decided to introduce new holograms for both domestic and foreign liquor bottles. The announcement was made after a cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai in state’s capital Raipur on Wednesday, October 16.
“To provide higher security features on excise adhesive labels (holograms) affixed to domestic/foreign liquor bottles, the decision was made to purchase holograms from the India Security Press, a Nasik based government of India undertaking in Maharashtra,” informed an official release issued by the government.
A unique identification will be put in place on each bottle which will further ease the process of detecting any unauthorised liquor sale in the state. The government’s decision is expected help curbing the illegal liquor trades in the state. Notably the state government had earlier approved a new excise policy for the state in a similar cabinet meeting held in state’s capital Raipur on June 19.
In the newly induced excise policy the government had decided to done away with the licensing system related to foreign liquor which was under scanner after allegations of corruption linked to liquor sale was surfaced during the previous government of Congress.
मुख्यमंत्री श्री @vishnudsai की अध्यक्षता में आयोजित कैबिनेट की बैठक में लिए गए महत्वपूर्ण निर्णय
#CabinetDecisions #ChhattisgarhUpdates #ChhattisgarhNews pic.twitter.com/K3c3g4hm34— CMO Chhattisgarh (@ChhattisgarhCMO) October 16, 2024
Other than the decision to procure new hologram, several other important announcements linked to procurement of paddy from farmers on support price from November 14, withdrawal of cases related to political movements, one-time age relaxations in police recruitment along approval of Chhattisgarh Rural Drinking Water Operation and Maintenance Rules have also been made by the cabinet.
Alleged liquor scam
It is noteworthy that a multi-crore scam occurred allegedly under the regime of the previous Congress government, prompting the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to initiate a comprehensive inquiry into the matter.
ED during its investigation into the case claimed to unearth a liquor scam worth over Rs 2000 crore being operated by a cartel composed of bureaucrats, private liquor suppliers, government officials and persons with heavy political backing in the state between the year 2019 to 2022 under the previous regime.
According to the ED, corruption was done in multiple ways which includes of bribes collected from the distillers per each Case of liquor procured from them by the Chhattisgarh State Marketing Corporation Limited (CSMCL), a state body for purchase and sale of liquor, sale of unaccounted Kachha off- the-book Country liquor which was sold from State run shops only, bribes taken from distillers to allow them to make a cartel and fixed market share and commission from FL 10 A license holders who were introduced in foreign liquor segment also.
The ED investigation into the case had further revealed that “an organised criminal syndicate led by Anwar Dhebar, one of the key accused in the case was operating in the state with the support of senior officials of the state government.
Investigation by multiple agencies and role of hologram
It is noteworthy that the allegation linked with the corruption is currently being investigated by the ED, Economic Offence Wing (EOW) of Chhattisgarh and Uttar Pradesh police who registered an FIR into the case following directives of the ED in July last year.
On May 2 this year, the UP police nabbed Vidhu Gupta, director of the Noida based ‘Prism Holography and Security Film Private Limited’ on charges of supplying duplicate holograms to the liquor syndicate operating in Chhattisgarh.
ED’s investigation into the matter revealed that the firm owned by Gupta was illegally granted a tender to supply holograms to the excise department of Chhattisgarh. The Holograms were made at the Noida factory, and then transported to Chhattisgarh as per the instructions from the Liquor syndicate leaders.
ED in April this year filed a fresh ECIR (Enforcement Case Information Report) into the case following the apex court quashed its earlier FIR which was based on an Income Tax department complaint. The agency nabbed former IAS official and kingpin of the scam, Anil Tuteja in April this year.
Tuteja, who retired last year, was allegedly the main kingpin of the scam and was closely associated with Anwar Dhebar. According to ED, the former IAS also played a significant role in the appointment of another key accused Arun Pati Tripathi as managing director of CSMCL.
Other than ED and Up police, the EOW filed a separate FIR against as many as 70 people including of businessmen, leaders of the Congress party, and a few state officials, in connection with the scam in January this year. The agency apprehended Anwar Dhebar, Arvind Singh and Arun Pati Tripathi, all accused in the multi-crore scam.
EOW arrested Dilip Pandey, state head for Chhattisgarh of Prizm Holography and Security Film Private Limited in July this year. The arrest was made days after the EOW’s officials recovered partially burnt fake holograms from a private property in Dhaneli village linked to Anwar Dhebar, a key accused and elder brother of Raipur’s mayor, Ejaj Dhebar a senior leader of the Congress party.
Pandey was taken into custody and interrogated subsequently after which the officials seized hard drive of an industrial computer linked with the printing setup of fake hologram from the basement of GST Bhavan in Nava Raipur. The setup was used to print serial numbers of fake holograms of the liquor bottles. Further the officials had also recovered documents pertaining to the transportation of these fake holograms from Noida to Raipur on the basis of inputs provided by Pandey.
It was then revealed that the owner of Prizm Holography Limited, Vidhu Gupta on instructions of the liquor syndicate which included a few officials of CSMCL, a state body for purchase and sale of liquor in Chhattisgarh and Anwar Dhebar supplied the said fake holograms to the Chhattisgarh based distillers.
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