AAP leader’s brother to be questioned in liquor seizure case

The Delhi Police on Sunday said that they are sending a notice to the Delhi transport minister Kailash Gahlot’s brother to join the probe in a case of seizure of

The Delhi Police on Sunday said that they are sending a notice to the Delhi transport minister Kailash Gahlot’s brother to join the probe in a case of seizure of illicit liquor from Mitraon village near Najafgarh on Thursday.

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Kailash Gahlot, who is the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidate from Najafgarh, said the probe was politically motivated.

Police said that they needed to question Harish Gahlot as two men, who were arrested with 2,640 bottles of illicit liquor, had disclosed that the consignment was smuggled into the city from Haryana on his instructions.

“We are sending a notice to the transport minister’s brother, Harish Gahlot, asking him to present himself before the investigating team. Harish’s name surfaced after we interrogated Ravinder alias Veeru and Virender Singh with 55 cartons that contained 2,640 bottles of illicit liquor. We will record Harish’s statement to ascertain his role in the smuggling of liquor when model code of conduct was on in the city,” said deputy commissioner of police (crime) Bhisham Singh.

Kailash Gahlot said the probe was being done to malign his reputation. “The case is politically motivated. Police have filed this case to malign my family’s reputation. As per my knowledge, the property does not belong to my brother. He has nothing to do with it,” Gahlot said.  

Police said that the first information report (FIR) registered by the crime branch in connection with the seizure of illicit liquor mention’s Harish’s name. While Ravinder was caught driving a Bolero car loaded with 15 cartons of liquor bottles, his questioning led the crime branch team to Virender Singh’s home where 40 more cartons were recovered.

“Virender told the raiding party members that the liquor bottles kept at his home belonged to Harish Gahlot and was to be used during the election,” said a crime branch officer, quoting the FIR, a copy of which is with Hindustan Times.