Jharkhand Police Seize 840 Litres Of Illegal Alcohol Bound For Bihar, Six Arrested

The police in Jharkhand’s Palamu district seized around 840 litres of illegal spirit and arrested six men from Bihar during a raid conducted on suspicion of liquor smuggling, an officer said on Monday.

The raid was carried out near a wine shop on the Chattarpur–Japla main road under Chattarpur police station limits after police received a tip-off that a consignment of illicit alcohol was being transported to Bihar in a pickup van, escorted by a car.

During the search, officers recovered 840 litres of spirit , which is a high-strength alcohol often used in the preparation of country liquor. Police said the substance was being transported without legal permission or licence , making it illegal under excise laws.

Following the seizure, six persons travelling in the pickup van were arrested on the spot. However, the driver of the escorting car managed to flee from the scene and is currently absconding, officials said.

Preliminary interrogation revealed that all six accused hail from different areas of Bihar’s Aurangabad district . They allegedly admitted that the consignment was intended for making spurious liquor , a hazardous form of alcohol illegally manufactured using unsafe ingredients.

Authorities noted that Bihar has been under a complete liquor prohibition since 2016 , banning the manufacture, sale, transport, and consumption of alcohol. Despite the strict law, illegal trafficking of alcohol from neighbouring states continues to be reported frequently.

Officials also pointed out that Bihar’s prohibition policy has faced repeated scrutiny, including recent observations from the Patna High Court , which criticised the state machinery for failing to effectively enforce the ban and warned about risks to public safety due to hooch tragedies .

Police said further investigation is underway to trace the absconding accused and identify the wider network involved in the illegal liquor supply chain.