Drunk in Dahod

Many of this 500-member strong community have been in prison several times and have been detained under Prevention of Anti-Social Activities Act (PASA). According to police records, there are about 200 women and almost an equal number of men who have cases of prohibition registered against them in Dahod town and rural police stations. According to police most of the liquor to Panchmahals region comprising Dahod and Panchmahals districts flows through Rariyati.

According to M K Parmar of Prohibition Police Station, 21,410 bottles were seized and 427 cases of bootlegging booked between this June and July. Seizures made by the Dahod town police station are reported to be over 25,000 bottles—a little higher than its rural counterpart.

Despite being ‘‘labelled’’ by the police, the Sansis are relatively guilt free. Samotiben, a widow who has about 30 cases of bootlegging to her name in the last 15 years is not apologetic. She’s proud of carrying on her husband and parents’ profession. She was one of three Sansi women who were booked under PASA and spent eight months in the Sabarmati Central Jail before their detention orders were quashed by the Gujarat High Court three years ago.

‘‘Why should I feel guilty about it? Our family has been doing it for several decades. Earlier, they sold out desi liquor, now we sell English liquor bottles,’’ she says.

Bootlegging may be illegal, she says, but it helped her bring up her six children after her husband’s death 15 years ago. She has done more than simply survive—she’s now acquired a fleet of vehicles including a Tata Sumo, two jeeps and several autorickshaws.

Flourishing bootlegging has exposed the failure of prohibition which still exists in Gujarat. Far from keeping out liquor, it appears to have spawned a regular mafia.

‘‘Do you think a bootlegger can operate without police patronage? Many big bootleggers pay haftas running into several lakhs to the police,’’ says Samotiben and another bootlegger Bhaichand, who spent six months in jail under PASA in 2002 and another six months this year. He has 35 cases registered against him.

Sansi bootleggers say police react promptly with raids and arrests if they don’t pay them. A woman bootlegger on condition of anonymity said a police sub-inspector posted in Dahod raised the hafta recently because he had spent Rs 51 lakh on building a house.

Naresh, a graduate who joined the family to expand the trade, said there were many bootleggers who want to give up their trade but the police demand for haftas keeps them going.

Dahod town police station in-charge S K Garasia refuted the charge and said his force was too small to implement prohibition strictly. For now at least Dahod’s dry days look far away.