Nalanda/Muzaffarpur, Oct. 15: Police seized 640 cartons of foreign liquor from Nalanda and Muzaffarpur districts in what is the biggest haul of illicit liquor in dry Bihar.

Both consignments were being smuggled in container trucks coming from Haryana.

Some 354 cartons were seized in Nalanda and 286 carton in Muzaffarpur district. Together, the haul adds up to around 6,750 litres of liquor worth over Rs 2 crore in the grey market - possibly making it the single-day largest recovery in Bihar. Seven persons have been arrested.

A major portion of the liquor seized in Nalanda was Royal Stag, while around 10 per cent of the consignment consisted of Imperial Blue and White Hills brands of whisky. The Nalanda operation comes on a day chief minister Nitish Kumar is in Rajgir to attend the JDU national conclave beginning on Sunday.

Nalanda superintendent of police Kumar Ashish told The Telegraph that the liquor bottles were seized in the early hours from a road near Chiraiyapul under Chandi police station.

"We had information that some people have formed a syndicate and were bringing foreign liquor from Haryana, hoarding it here and selling it in areas around Biharsharif," he said. "We trapped the truck after a tip-off."

Five persons, including ringleader Sanjit Kumar Singh alias Munna Singh, were arrested. Singh and three of his associates are from different areas in Nalanda district, while one person is a resident of North 24-Parganas district in Bengal. A pick-up truck was also seized during the operation.

The seizure in Muzaffarpur district also took place in the early hours, from Godanpatti village under Gaighat police station.

Two drivers were arrested and the police seized five mini-trucks stationed in the area to dispatch the smuggled liquor to different destinations. This has been one of the biggest seizures among six such operations in the district in the past two months.

"The culprits had planned to send the smuggled liquor to East Champaran and Vaishali districts and other areas to sell them at higher prices," Muzaffarpur senior superintendent of police (SSP) Vivek Kumar said. "The consignment is worth Rs 1 crore."

Similar to the Nalanda raid, most of the liquor seized in the district was the Royal Stag brand of whisky.

"The two drivers who steered the truck from Haryana have been identified as Sushil Mahto and Roshan Kumar. They have revealed the name of Sudhir Mandal of Muzaffarpur to whom the consignment was to be delivered," Vivek said.

A manhunt has been launched for Sudhir and his accomplices. His property details are also being traced and could be confiscated under the provisions of the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act, 2016.

Gaighat police station house officer Ram Balak Yadav said Sudhir was running the illegal business of foreign liquor in the district and has emerged as a major smuggler of alcoholic drinks. Before prohibition, he held licences of shops selling foreign and country liquor in the area.

"Some organised gangs are involved in liquor smuggling in the district," SSP Vivek said. "However, we have been successful in making big seizures because of our experienced personnel, their homework, intelligence inputs and constant monitoring."