Police register 1,322 cases against drunk revellers on New Year's eve in 'dry' Gujarat

Ahmedabad: The Gujarat police cracked down on people found consuming liquor, drinking and driving and violating traffic rules during New Year celebrations in the dry state. As people came out in large numbers at clubs and hotels, some even resorted to vandalism at a venue in Ahmedabad city where organisers prepared to stop the party at midnight in view of the notification issued by the administration. In Surat, a CCTV footage has captured two policemen thrashing a man on the night of December 31, inspector H S Acharya of Udhna police station said.

"The policemen belonged to Udhna police station, and the matter is being probed as per the police commissioner's order. The full video shows that the man was trying to run away like a suspect and was caught by the police before being thrashed," the official said.

Revellers protested and resorted to vandalism at a club in Ahmedabad after the organisers decided to stop the function at 10 pm, an official from Anandnagar police station said. The matter is being investigated, he said.

Meanwhile, the police armed with breath analysers and drug detection kits intercepted people and carried out random checks. According to the police, offences were registered against hundreds of inebriated revellers across the state under provisions of the Gujarat Prohibition Act.

A drive was also carried out in areas sharing borders with neighbouring states to nab revellers who went there to consume alcohol. In Vadodara city, at least 3,000 suspects were intercepted and checked, and 89 cases of liquor consumption were registered in 24 hours till Sunday morning, an official said.

A massive crackdown was launched in Valsad district neighbouring Daman district of the Union Territory of Daman, Diu and Dadra and Nagar Haveli, where liquor is freely available, police said.

As many as 1,322 cases were registered against people who were caught drunk in 24 hours till December 31 midnight, they said. The police also busted two parties where liquor was being consumed, it was stated.