Himalaya Harbinger Rudrapur Bureau
Police have arrested a liquor smuggler who evaded authorities for 21 years after being declared a proclaimed offender (PO) in 2004
The accused, Dhruv Prasad, 46, was initially arrested for smuggling Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) in Kharar, but fled soon after and was declared a PO the same year. Dhruv, who was living in Bhagomajra village, Kharar, fled to his hometown Uttar Pradesh’s Ballia district. Over the years, he returned to Punjab, settling in Nawanshahar Badala village to avoid detection. In the two decades he spent in hiding, Dhruv built a new life — got married, had children, and continued working as a mason.
According to DSP Naveen Pal Singh Lehal, the breakthrough came after police obtained his son’s phone number from local contacts. A decoy customer posing as a contractor contacted Dhruv for a masonry job. Once he agreed to a meeting, he was arrested on Tuesday and produced in court on Wednesday, which remanded him to judicial custody.
