Wayanad: In a pre-Vishu crackdown, the Excise Department arrested two persons and seized 252 litres of Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) hidden in the kitchen of a rented house near Mananthavady on Wednesday evening.

The arrested have been identified as Jyothish Babu T, a native of Kozhikode, and Ajith V T, a native of Pakkam, Pulppally.

The raids were led by Mananthavady Circle Inspector Sajith Chandran, who said the team had been conducting a series of inspections across suspected smuggling hubs in interior villages including Kallodi, Periya, Valad, Tirunelli, and Kattikulam in recent days. The liquor, officials said, was being stockpiled in anticipation of increased demand during the Vishu-Easter festival season starting Sunday.

"There were widespread reports of illegal IMFL sales, but identifying the key culprits was a challenge," said CI Sajith Chandran. "Despite round-the-clock surveillance, the duo had been smuggling liquor from Mahe for over a year and a half, using different vehicles and going into hiding whenever enforcement intensified."

The breakthrough came when Excise sleuths tracked the suspects’ movements and identified a rented house linked to Jyothish as the base of operations. A surprise raid at the house revealed the liquor cache concealed in the kitchen.

Excise officials said the accused had sourced the IMFL from Mahe and distributed it through a local supply network. "If convicted, the accused could face up to 10 years in prison and a fine of Rs 1 lakh," CI Sajith added.

The operation involved Excise Preventive Officers Arun Prasad E and Anoop E, Civil Excise Officers Sanoop K S, Amana Sherin, and Shimjith P, among others.

The accused were produced before the Judicial First Class Magistrate Court, Mananthavady, and remanded to judicial custody on Thursday.