Caps sold to counterfeiters who blend duplicate liquor in original bottles, says excise dept
The state excise department ended 2014 with a bang by seizing around 4,000 duplicate caps of premium liquor brands worth around Rs 12.50 lakh meant to be sold to counterfeiters, who use such caps to seal bottles of premium brands filled with medium-end liquor. The bottles are then sold to unsuspecting consumers or headed for New Year parties to be passed off as the original brew.
Why are the caps worth so much?
Inspectors Mukund Bilolikar and Subhash Jadhav of the state excise flying squad said they unearthed the stash of corks when they had raided a spot in Vile Parle (East) based on a tip-off. Sub-inspector Datta Shinde, who is investigating the case, said one man had been arrested. These caps, which carried markings of Black Label, Chivas Regal, Red Label, Ballantine's, Vat 69, Glenfiddich and Black and White, were meant to be sold at prices up to Rs 300 each, depending on the brands. "These corks are sold to those who blend duplicate liquor. The accused also sold a couple of consignments to bootleggers in Gujarat," he added. Due to which, the total value of the seizure can go up to Rs 12.50 lakh.
Where do they come from?
Officials said there was a possibility that these duplicate corks, which bear a massive resemblance to the originals, were manufactured in China and brought to Mumbai via Delhi. "There is a possibility that these corks were being stockpiled for duplication to meet the demand for year-end parties. The period from Christmas to New Year sees a rise in liquor consumption," noted Shinde.
Earlier this month, the squad had unearthed a similar haul of 1,057 fake corks of premium brands and 585 labels at Vakola.
How do bootleggers get access to empty bottles?
While it is mandatory for five-stars, permit rooms, clubs and other retail outlets to break bottles of premium imported brands of scotch, single malt whisky and tequilas and deface or remove labels from empty bottles of IMFL to prevent their misuse, it is difficult to ensure that individual consumers are adhering to the rule. These empty bottles, which are discarded or sold to raddiwalas, are used by bootleggers to sell duplicates.
Duplicate brew sold at hefty discounts
"The bootleggers buy empty bottles of scotch brands and fill low or medium-end brands in them and sell them to customers or party organisers at a hefty discount. At times, this is passed off as original brew which is sourced from duty free shops. If a 750 ml bottle of scotch costs Rs 4,850 in a wine shop, the counterfeiters will sell the duplicate brew at around Rs 1,900," an official explained.
State a transit point for liquor smuggling
Maharashtra follows a policy of discouraging liquor consumption through high prices and low sales and has one of the highest excise duty regimes in India. However, neighbouring states and union territories like Goa and Daman have comparatively liberal policies and the cheaper costs of liquor there lead to a huge incentive for smugglers and bootleggers to smuggle in the brew to Maharashtra. With neighbouring Gujarat under prohibition, Maharashtra has also become a transit point for transporting liquor from states like Haryana and Madhya Pradesh to the dry state.
IMFL sales soaring in city
In 2013-14, IMFL consumption rose by 7.84% to end at 1,615.06 lakh bulk litres (BL) in 2013-14 versus 1,497.62 lakh BL in 2012-13. The sales of beer have however headed south at just 2,986.09 lakh BL in 2013-14 down from 3,169.34 lakh BL in the previous fiscal (-5.78%), while country liquor (CL) too fell to 3,210.97 lakh BL from 3382.99 lakh BL (-5.08%). However, wine consumption rose by 9.71% to end at 50.56 lakh BL from the previous 46.08 lakh BL.
2 held for not surrendering unsold liquor
Sub-inspector S S Amberkar said they had also arrested two people, including a senior official of a music group management company, for not surrendering 108 cases of a fruit-based liquor after the company's event was over. Instead, the executive had kept the cases worth Rs 2,59,200, at the other accused's house in Chembur.
According to the rules, people, hotels or companies who take the FL-IV (one-day temporary club license permit), for events and parties, have to purchase liquor from godowns (FL-I license holders). After the event, the unsold liquor has to be surrendered to the district collector, who will auction it and return the money after deductions to the licensee. They also have to submit a statement to the department with details of the liquor purchased and consumed, and the remaining liquor cannot be sold elsewhere. Amberkar said the liquor in this case could have been meant for sale elsewhere.
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