Odisha Excise department has ordered an inspection of Out Still (OS) shops to ascertain if all licensing conditions were followed as per the 2023-24 excise policy after Income Tax (I-T) sleuths seized cash estimated over ₹350 crore from premises linked to some distilleries in the State.
“Inspection of shops and ascertaining that licensing conditions are followed in shops are our routine job. However, we have asked field officials to complete inspections in a week time,” said Narasingha Bhola, State Excise Commissioner. Officials will physically check registers of shops in 22 excise districts of the State, said Mr. Bhola.
Regarding the discovery of a substantial amount of cash from distillery premises, the Excise Commissioner remarked that the I-T department had not yet issued a formal statement or provided a rationale for the cash accumulation. Mr. Bhola stated that if the evasion of excise duty or concealment of production details was suspected, a thorough investigation would be conducted.
Upon initial examination, it was found that Baldeo Sahu and Group of Companies Limited, a company at the center of controversy, owned seven out of 14 OS shops in Jharsuguda, five out of 15 in Rayagada, and four out of 32 in Sambalpur district. However, sources suggested that proprietors of numerous OS shops were connected to the Sahu family, controlling OS shops across various western Odisha districts.
A senior official asserted that the accumulated cash likely did not originate from distillery business profits, as the industry did not yield super profits. The undisclosed cash found in the distillery premises may have been intended for political purposes.
Meanwhile, the State Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) staged an agitation and burnt the effigy of State Excise Minister Ashwini Patra protesting that the faulty State Excise Policy was the reason behind amassing of cash by OS shop operators.
