Liquor lobby has the last laugh, Kiran closes file –ToI-20.12.11

Action Unlikely Against Those Caught In Raids

Hyderabad: Bowing to intense pressure from the powerful but agitated liquor lobby, chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy has decided to put the lid on bringing to book those found guilty of malpractices in the recent raids on liquor contractors across the state by the Anti Corruption Bureau. As a result, despite excise minister Mopidevi Venkata Ramana’s assertion that action will be taken against all those found indulging in the racket, nothing concrete will result from the recent ACB raids on liquor contractors. “The chief minister has assured us that the file on the ACB raids will be closed,” a minister told TOI on Monday evening. 
    According to estimates, while the sale of liquor fetched a revenue of Rs 17,500 crore last year, the liquor racket is said to be running to the tune of Rs 10,000 crore. “Several ministers are themselves part of various liquor syndicates and all of them indulge in various malpractices. In such a situation, how can one expect chief minister Kiran Kumar to crack down on this multi-crore scam,” said officials in the know of this flourishing racket. This especially at a time when the ruling Congress is rocked by other problems. 
    For example, one minister from coastal Andhra has partnership in three liquor syndicates in that region, and has publicly admitted to having 5% stake in them. The husband of another minister from the Telangana region himself heads one syndicate. Yet another minister from the coastal region is also part of at least four liquor syndicates, and his brother recently secured dealership for supplying beer to Tamil Nadu. “That being the situation, how can either the chief minister, excise department or ACB bring the guilty to book,” asked these official sources. 
    The liquor racket operates in four different ways, charging over and above the Maximum Retail Price (MRP), adding water to liquor, through the sale of spurious liquor, and operation of belt shops. The margin between the price that the AP Breweries Corporation pays for buying liquor and the MRP is about 25%. “In reality, the liquor contractors charge anywhere between Rs 5 to Rs 30 over and above the MRP and this is rampant throughout the state,” said well informed sources. Officials, politicos get mamools from belt shops 
    Dilution of the liquor through addition of water is also widely prevalent. 
    “And in the instances of sale of spurious liquor, several lorry loads of such spurious liquor have been seized from Vizianagaram, Hyderabad and Warangal. Cases too were booked, but till date, no action has been taken against those found guilty,” the sources in the know of things lamented. 
    According to the sources, there are 1.5 lakh belt shops (unauthorised liquor vends) that are operating across the state. “Since everything about the belt shop is illegal, the seller has to pay off the revenue, excise and police officials, besides paying mamool to local politicians, hoodlums, sarpanches and village development committees,” they said. 
    Virtually confirming that nothing would come out of the recent raids, ACB sources said the local units of the bureau have been directed to send the seized files and CDs to the head office in Hyderabad, and that it would take them at least two months to go through all of them before arriving at any conclusion. But with the reported assurance of Kiran Kumar to the liquor mafia, the ACB can go easy on the whole investigation.