Overview
- State excise teams intercepted a container on the Mumbai–Nashik highway and found thousands of bottles labelled for sale only in Goa, seizing the vehicle and arresting the driver who has been charged under Maharashtra prohibition laws.
- Authorities reported different valuations for the haul, with officials citing about 77,760 bottles of Royal Banyan whisky and estimates ranging roughly between Rs 1.63 crore and Rs 1.90 crore.
- Separate, near‑concurrent actions in Palghar and multiple Gujarat SMC raids in Rajkot, Morbi and Botad produced additional large IMFL recoveries, seized vehicles and cash, and led to arrests and lists of wanted suspects.
- Officials say smugglers hid liquor in container trucks, used false waybills claiming electronics and routed consignments along major highways to exploit excise differences between states and union territories.
- Investigations are ongoing to trace suppliers, transporters and recipients and enforcement sources say the intensified, intelligence‑led push is meant to disrupt organised interstate smuggling and curb revenue loss from duty evasion.