20 Held After Police Bust Liquor Party at Ahmedabad Farmhouse

Police raided a farmhouse outside of Ahmedabad city and arrested 15 people, including 13 African nationals, for allegedly drinking alcohol at a party. Five more people were later taken into custody.

The late-night operation on Friday at the farmhouse in the Shilaj area resulted in the discovery of 15 persons, including 13 African students, who were arrested out of the almost 70 people present, he added.

Om Prakash Jat, Superintendent of Police (SP), Ahmedabad-Rural, told reporters that five more people, including two bootleggers and the owner of the farmhouse, were captured early on Saturday, bringing the total number of people arrested in relation to the party to 20

A preliminary probe revealed the liquor party was organised in the garb of a get-together meant for African students currently studying in various colleges and universities in Gujarat, where the sale and consumption of liquor is banned, Jat informed.

After receiving a tip-off about the availability of alcohol at the event, police personnel purchased passes and entered the venue as guests in civil dress, he said.

"Based on a specific tip-off, police teams raided a farmhouse in the city's Shilaj area and nabbed 15 persons, including 13 African nationals, in a drunk state. These African nationals are studying in different universities of the state, including the Gujarat University," said the SP.

Police seized 15 'hookahs' (waterpipes used to smoke specially prepared tobacco mixes), which are also prohibited in Gujarat, and 51 bottles of Indian-made foreign liquor during the operation, according to Jat.

According to the police officer, some of the international students were from Comoros, Madagascar, and Mozambique, but the bulk were from Kenya.

According to the SP, two local bootleggers, Anant Kapil and Ashish Jadeja, as well as farmhouse owner Milan Patel, were among the five other people who were later apprehended.

"The get-together was meant for African students, and it was organised by a Kenyan student. The prices of passes for the event ranged from Rs 700 to Rs 25,000. A liquor party was organised in the farmhouse in the garb of a get-together. However, we did not find any narcotics substance during the raid," said Jat.

Those arrested were booked under relevant sections of the Gujarat Prohibition Act and under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for hatching a criminal conspiracy, said the officer. 

With PTI inputs.