Goa excise sleuths bust over Rs 1 cr liquor tax evasion racket

PANAJI
The Goa Excise officials busted a major tax evasion racket involving a Haryana-based liquor distribution company, which attempted – probably for the first time – to push a consignment of premium liquor into the State, that too, illegally and without paying over Rs 1 crore in duties.

A truck registered in Haryana, loaded with high-end liquor brands including Chivas Regal, Absolut Vodka, Johnnie Walker and Black Label, was intercepted at the Patradevi checkpost on Wednesday afternoon. Sources confirmed to The Goan that the seizure of high-value liquor bottles was meant for the Goan market, masquerading as a consignment for “Customs”.

However, the Excise sleuths saw through the smokescreen. The truck driver, who was briefly arrested, claimed the consignment was for “Customs.” But inconsistencies began to surface, starting with the size of the bottles.

“Those meant for Customs liquor must come in 1,000 ml packaging but the seized bottles were mostly 750 ml and under, which is a standard size for retail sale. We arrested the driver and interrogated him. Being a bailable offence, he was released soon thereafter, but our investigation continues, including the quality and authenticity of the liquor,” the source added.

After the seizure, officials raided a warehouse in Alto Pilerne, where the trail led them to a new revelation – this was probably the company’s first consignment to Goa and completely off the books.

“There was no duty paid, no permits, no labels, no excise clearance... Nothing. This was an attempt to smuggle premium liquor into Goa under the radar and profit off the tourist-heavy retail belt,” the source revealed while confirming that the illegal entry, had it gone undetected, would have cost the exchequer over Rs 1 crore in lost revenue.

The seized consignment itself is worth an estimated Rs 75 lakh in market value.

Company faces suspension risk, show cause issued

The Excise department has now slapped the Haryana-based distribution firm with a show cause notice and is considering suspension of its wholesale operations in Goa. The inquiry officers are now probing if the company had plans for a larger illicit supply network in the State, disguised as legitimate Customs-bound stock.

“Liquor from Haryana, especially from Gurgaon and Faridabad, is often much cheaper due to low taxation. This makes it a magnet for bootleggers and tax evaders. A recent report even exposed illegal rebottling operations in Haryana, where cheaper alcohol was repackaged as a premium brand,” the source said, adding, ‘If we hadn’t acted fast, the government would have lost crores on just this single consignment’.

Excise officials are not ruling out deeper links to black-market operations that may already be flourishing elsewhere. The Goan tried contacting the Commissioner Sarpreet Gill and Additional Commissioner Gaurish Shankwalkar but they remained unavailable for comment.