3-fold increase in seizures of cash, drugs, liquor this poll
A day before the Assembly elections, seizures of cash, drugs, liquor, precious metals and other valuables in Haryana reached Rs 71.60 crore, which is three times the amount seized during the 2019 state poll.
During the 2019 Assembly elections, total seizures a day before voting amounted to Rs 24.07 crore.
Ambala district, which is witnessing tight contests in several Assembly segments, leads the state with a total recovery worth Rs 11.76 crore in the current elections.
The police, income tax officials, and Excise and Taxation Department are involved in the seizures.
In 2024, during the model code of conduct (MCC) period up to today, a total of 3,213.727 kg of narcotics worth Rs 10.10 crore was seized, more than double the amount seized during the last Assembly elections, when drugs worth Rs 3.93 crore were recovered.
In the 2024 Assembly elections, Gurugram, from which wealthier candidates are contesting, witnessed drug seizures worth Rs 1.27 crore, the highest across all districts. Sirsa, where drug peddling is rampant, saw drug recoveries worth Rs 1.22 crore, while Yamunanagar experienced seizures of narcotics valued at Rs 1.21 crore. In Kurukshetra, agencies recovered drugs worth Rs 1.19 crore.
Regarding liquor, 4.48 lakh litres valued at Rs 16.23 crore were recovered during the current polls, compared to 4.01 lakh litres of alcohol worth Rs 10.98 crore seized in 2019.
Among districts, Karnal, which is experiencing tight contests for several seats, saw a recovery of 62,028 litres of liquor worth Rs 2.06 crore, the highest during the 2024 polls. This was followed by Faridabad, where 33,699 litres of alcohol was seized, valued at Rs 2.05 crore, and Fatehabad, where agencies recovered 21,195 litres of alcohol worth Rs 1.91 crore.
Cash worth Rs 29.63 crore was seized in the run-up to the current polls. Among districts, the maximum cash was recovered in Gurugram (Rs 6.89 crore), followed by Faridabad (Rs 6.21 crore) and Panipat (Rs 2.47 crore). In 2019, only Rs 9.10 crore was seized.
In terms of precious metals like gold and silver, the current elections saw recoveries worth Rs 8.85 crore. Ambala alone accounted for the seizure of 52,318 grams of precious metal worth Rs 7.31 crore, while Sirsa saw recoveries of 1,470 grams valued at Rs 1.12 crore.
