Bhavnagar Spurious Liquor Racket: Mastermind Rais Arrested in Bhopal, Court Grants Nine-Day Police Custody
Summarized by AI; it may make mistakes. Check important info
Summarized by AI; it may make mistakes. Check important info
In a major breakthrough following the toxic alcohol tragedy that claimed eight lives in Bhavnagar, Gujarat Police and the Crime Branch arrested the key mastermind, Rais alias Rais Ahmad Gasi Babu Ansari, from Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh.
Acting on precise location tracking and technical surveillance, a police team tracked down Ansari after he fled to the neighbouring state following the tragedy. Local authorities brought him to Bhavnagar under heavy security and produced him before a local magistrate on Friday, 21 August, seeking his custody to unravel the supply chain.
Nine Days to Unearth Chemical Network
The court remanded Ansari in police custody for nine days, allowing investigators time to probe the source of the lethal chemicals, the illicit manufacturing process, and the broader interstate distribution network.
The tragedy has left eight people dead and over 31 individuals undergoing treatment at Sir T. Hospital in Bhavnagar alongside private facilities. Investigators suspect the network spans state borders, relying on illegal industrial chemical diversions to churn out deadly bootleg liquor.
Broadening Crackdown Across State Borders
Ansari’s arrest follows the remand of 13 other key suspects who were produced in court on 21 August and sent to 10-day police custody.
With the main operative now in hand, senior officers expect sustained interrogation to expose higher-ups, chemical suppliers, and local distributors involved in the racket. Police maintain that further raids will follow across Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh as the investigation unfolds.
