Chandigarh, May 23 – During Lok Sabha General Elections 2024 in Haryana, there has been a continuous surge in the seizure of illegal liquor, drugs, and cash compared to the previous Lok Sabha elections. To date, various agencies have confiscated a total of Rs 18.56 crore in cash, along with illicit liquor, drugs, and other valuables valued at Rs 56.88 crore. Consequently, the overall figure has escalated to Rs 75.44 crore. In contrast, during the Lok Sabha General Election in 2019, the total value of cash, illicit liquor, drugs, and valuables seized amounted to Rs 18.36 crore.
Chief Electoral Officer Sh Anurag Agarwal said that the continuous surveillance is being made in the state by the Police, Income Tax Department, Excise and Taxation Department, and Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI). Up to now, the police have seized primarily Rs 693.66 lakh in cash, the Income Tax Department has confiscated Rs 873.78 lakh, and the DRI has seized Rs 278 lakh. Additionally, other agencies have also seized cash.
He said that more than 4.05 lakh liters of illicit liquor worth a total of Rs 13.31 crore has been seized by various agencies. This mainly includes the seizure of 2,95,759 liters of illicit liquor worth Rs 923.13 lakh by the police and 1,09,583 liters of illicit liquor worth Rs 408.47 lakh by the Excise Department.
Drugs worth Rs 14 crore seized
Sh Anurag Agarwal said that agencies have seized drugs amounting to a total of Rs 14 crore. The police alone have confiscated narcotics worth Rs 13.93 crore. Additionally, the NCB has seized 2 kg of drugs valued at Rs 4 lakh. Furthermore, valuables worth Rs 26.12 crore and other items worth Rs 3.42 crore have also been seized.
Citizens also aware of violation of model code of conduct
The Chief Electoral Officer highlighted the commendable awareness among the state’s voters regarding the Model Code of Conduct. Citizens are actively reporting instances of Model Code of Conduct violations to the Commission via the C-Vigil mobile app, with these complaints being resolved within 100 minutes. This proactive engagement from the general public through the “C-Vigil” mobile app reflects their commitment to participating in the democratic process. Furthermore, he appealed to voters to exercise their right to vote on May 25, emphasizing the importance of democratic participation.