Slug: Booze & Sarpanch SagaAhmedabad: Kheda cybercrime police lodged a complaint against an Instagram user for allegedly circulating a post — containing a photograph of deputy CM Harsh Sanghavi — claiming that liquor is being sold in a village.The complaint was filed on Aug 27 by cybercrime police sub-inspector Niraj Barot, who came across the account while monitoring social media platforms.According to the complaint, the post uploaded on Aug 26 suggested that immediate action, including possible suspension, would be taken against the village’s sarpanch. The post alleged that the sarpanch knew about liquor being sold openly.Police alleged that the post was designed in the format of a news report and could give the impression that Sanghavi himself had made the statements. The cybercrime unit traced the mobile number linked to the account and found it registered in the name of a Kheda district resident.The complaint comes days after the Bhavnagar hooch tragedy, in which 13 people died after allegedly consuming spurious liquor sold as Indian-made foreign liquor (IMFL). The tragedy had drawn heightened attention to illegal liquor networks in the state.The account holder has been booked under sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Information Technology Act.Police have been monitoring social media for fabricated news and misleading posts, particularly those using the photographs or identities of public officials.
