Nainital: In a massive haul of illicit liquor, state excise department on Thursday seized more than 5,000 cartons of alcohol from Haldwani near Nainital. Officials said that the liquor would be worth at least Rs 2 to 3 crore at market rates. The recovery of such a large consignment of liquor has led to speculations that it was intended to be used for the upcoming municipal elections in the state.Incidentally, the bottles were stored in a godown containing sanitary ware and ceramic tiles in Gajajauli area of Haldwani. Police officials said that one person had been arrested and efforts are on to nab two other accused.Pradeep Singh, deputy commissioner of the excise department in Haldwani, said, “We got a tip-off about illicit alcohol being stored in large quantity. After gathering more information, we conducted the operation on Thursday. This is easily one of the largest single haul in the history of the state.” The deputy commissioner added, “We are also questioning the owners of the godown and other people for every possible leads. This could be the tip of a big racket of illegal alcohol smuggling in the state.”Sources added that teams have been constituted to look for other people that may be involved and investigations have been launched on how the huge liquor consignment reached Haldwani.Meanwhile, Haldwani-based social worker Dimple Pandey said that there should be a proper investigation of the matter. “We cannot be sure that the alcohol was for use during polls but we also cannot rule out the possibility. A proper investigation and surprise raids should be conducted.”

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