39 officers on excise duty sent back to Delhi Police

Among the repatriated officials are seven sub inspectors, 16 head constables and rest of them are constables, officials of the excise department said.

Thirty-nine policemen, deployed with the excise intelligence bureau (EIB) and excise department of the Delhi government for a long time, have been repatriated to Delhi Police in accordance with an excise department order issued August 6, officials said on Monday.

Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena has ordered an inquiry by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the alleged lapses and irregularities in the implementation of AAP government’s excise policy for 2021-22. (PTI)

“The repatriated Delhi Police personnel have completed their deputation period in the excise intelligence bureau and the excise department. They will now report back to their parent department (Delhi Police),” an excise department official said.

Among the repatriated officials are seven sub inspectors, 16 head constables and rest of them are constables, he said.

A Delhi Police official in the know of the matter said it was a routine transfer.

The move comes close to the suspension of 11 officials of the excise department on the order of lieutenant governor VK Saxena for “serious lapses” in the implementation of the city’s 2021-22 excise policy. The suspended officials include Arava Gopi Krishna, who was the city’s excise commissioner when the new excise policy was implemented, and the incumbent deputy commissioner Anand Tiwari. The changes mean that the excise department will get fresh faces and fresh manpower, including in place of the suspended officials, before it switches back to the old excise regime from September 1.

In accordance with the old excise regime, private liquor vends (that are currently selling liquor) will shut down and government-run liquor stores will open. This system will remain in place till the Delhi government formulates a new excise policy for the national capital. The decision to switch back to the old excise regime was taken after Saxena recommended a CBI probe into alleged irregularities in the implementation of the new excise policy.

The EIB is usually headed by an assistant commissioner of police, and the unit keeps a check on the interstate smuggling of various intoxicants and drugs, the detection of manufacture and sale of illicit liquor and drugs, illegal serving of liquor at unlicensed premises, and liaises with various units of Delhi Police to combat bootlegging. The total number of personnel in the EIB is not immediately available.

Excise commissioner Krishna Mohan Uppu did not comment on the development.

Meanwhile, Delhi government agencies have started applying for liquor permits so that they can open retail stores by September 1. According to officials, four government agencies --Delhi State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation, Delhi Tourism and Transportation Development Corporation, Delhi Consumer’s Cooperative Wholesale Store, and Delhi State Civil Supplies Corporation Ltd--are working on opening 500 retail liquor stores by the end of August.