In Bihar, horse used to smuggle liquor is now evidence in the case

Although the horse has now been taken into custody, its handler allegedly escaped. Rajesh Kumar, the Station House Officer (SHO) of Nautan Police Station, said the police were tipped off about the alleged smuggling.

“During a raid we noticed a man [with the horse]. Sensing the police presence, he abandoned the horse and the liquor and fled into the darkness. We have, however, identified him. An FIR has been lodged and efforts are being made to arrest him,” the officer told The Indian Express.

The alcohol and the horse were both brought to Nautan Police Station, with the police now looking to entrust the care of the beast to someone who is “capable of caring for it”.

“The arrangement will also be reported to the court, so that if and when required, the horse can be used as evidence, such as when trying to identify the owner in court,” the SHO said.

According to the police, this is the second such incident in recent months, with horses now increasingly replacing two-wheelers for liquor smuggling.

“With increased patrols on roads, traffickers are now using horses to transport liquor across the riverine terrain of the Gandak area. Bikes get noticed due to their sounds and light. So, to avoid detection, smugglers take horses through fields and less accessible routes by the river,” he said, adding that the police had seized another horse used for smuggling two months earlier.