Dewas liquor smuggling investigations intensified after Khategaon police station in-charge Dilip Puri was killed when a truck allegedly carrying illegal liquor ran over him during an operation on the Indore-Betul highway in the early hours of Monday, according to Dewas superintendent of police Aditya Mishra.
Puri had been leading one of five special teams formed to act against illegal liquor movement in the area. The team reached the truck at about 1.30 am after receiving information about suspected liquor smuggling, Mishra told the Times of India.
The vehicle was found parked beside the highway divider. When Puri asked the driver to step out, the driver allegedly drove the truck onto the divider and attempted to move forward. The truck’s rear wheel ran over the inspector, causing serious injuries and heavy blood loss, according to accounts cited in the report.
Puri was taken to hospital, where doctors attempted cardiopulmonary resuscitation and other life-saving measures for nearly two hours. He later died. The driver crossed the divider, abandoned the truck at Sandalpur and fled, police said.
Police moved the vehicle to Sandalpur police station and began searching for the driver and others allegedly connected with the consignment. Mishra said a special investigation team had been formed to examine the case, identify those involved in the liquor operation and establish the destination of the truck.
Police found 1,800 litres of Indian-made foreign liquor packed in 208 boxes inside the vehicle, according to the SP. The recovery is now part of the investigation into the supply chain and the people allegedly responsible for moving the consignment through the district.
The killing has also brought renewed attention to liquor enforcement in Dewas, where suspected poisonous liquor recently claimed lives in Chandana and neighbouring Binjana, villages located about 7 km from the district headquarters. Villagers had claimed that more than 13 people died in the two settlements over 20 days and that several others suffered eyesight damage.
Following that episode, the Dewas collector and superintendent of police were replaced. Three excise officials, including district excise officer Basanti Bhuria, were also suspended. The latest incident places police and excise enforcement under further scrutiny as investigators examine how the truck entered the area, who controlled the consignment and where it was headed.
Puri is survived by his wife, Kavita, and their son and daughter. The special investigation team is continuing efforts to trace the driver and identify the wider network linked to the seized liquor.
