In a dramatic display of zero tolerance ahead of the New Year celebrations, the Vadodara city police on Monday crushed seized liquor worth a staggering Rs 1.71 crore under heavy road rollers. The public destruction event was orchestrated to send an unequivocal warning to bootleggers and violators of the state's prohibition law.
A 700-Metre Stretch of Destroyed Contraband
The operation took place on a deserted road leading to Koyali on the outskirts of Vadodara. Police personnel from 17 different police stations in the city laid out the confiscated stash, which included thousands of beer cans and liquor bottles, along a 700-metre stretch. Two road rollers were then deployed to systematically crush the containers, spilling litres of illicit alcohol onto the asphalt as senior police officials supervised the process.
This massive haul is part of a larger crackdown throughout the year. Vadodara City Police Commissioner Narasimha Komar stated that the contraband destroyed on Monday represented 50,000 units of seized alcohol. He further revealed that this was the sixth such destruction exercise in 2025, bringing the total value of liquor destroyed within Vadodara city limits this year to over Rs 7.54 crore.
Strong Message and Year-End Statistics
Commissioner Komar emphasized that the exercise was a deliberate year-end message. "This is a year-end message that strong action will be initiated against those breaking the law even in 2026," he asserted. He outlined the police's rigorous enforcement in 2025, which included lodging over 3,000 cases under the Prohibition Act and making a similar number of arrests. These cases spanned manufacturing, possession, transport, and consumption of both country-made and Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL).
The police also employed stringent legal measures against repeat offenders. Komar detailed that in 2025, the force had:
- Booked 131 repeat offenders under the Gujarat Prevention of Anti-Social Activities Act (PASA).
- Externed 15 individuals as per due legal process.
- Initiated bail cancellation proceedings against 200 persons under the Prohibition Law.
- Recovered over Rs 5 lakh in fines.
Cracking Down on Organized Crime Networks
Highlighting the focus on organized bootlegging rings, the Commissioner provided a significant update on a major case. An organised criminal gang led by the notorious bootlegger Alpu Sindhi was booked under the stringent Gujarat Control of Terrorism and Organised Crime Act, 2015 (GUJCTOC). "The process of identifying their properties for attachment is underway to disrupt their economic chain built on the proceeds of crime," Komar explained, signaling a move to financially cripple such networks.
The Vadodara police have vowed to continue their forceful enforcement of the Prohibition Act into 2026. The visual spectacle of road rollers flattening crores worth of liquor serves as a stark reminder of the legal consequences awaiting those involved in the illicit liquor trade, especially during the festive season.
