Crime branch raids illegal Holi bash, hundreds left high & dry after paying entry fees

Nagpur: Around 500 Holi revellers were left high and dry after paying entry fees, as cops raided an unauthorised event at a hotel-cum-resort on the Nagpur-Jabalpur Highway on Friday.
Liquor bottles and the DJ systems were seized by the crime branch. Despite police rejecting the permission, it's still not clear how the party, having a large number of revellers, was organised. While the local Wathoda police claimed to be unaware of the large gathering, the raid was conducted by the crime branch following a tip-off.
Police said organisers Ashish Tiwari and Nilesh Rokade were booked along with one Sunil Gautam following the raid. The owner of the premises, Arif Shaikh, was made a co-accused but is still at large, said police. Tiwari and Arif were key promoters of the event.
Hundreds of revellers thronged a lawn adjacent to FLD Hotel and Resort, where the Holi party was organised without police permission. A day earlier, the permission was rejected by Harish Kumar Borade, senior inspector of Wathoda police station.
"The owner and organisers were told about the rejection of the permission. Still, they went ahead and organised the show," said Borade, adding liquor was brought at the party venue by a reveller.
Borade also said the tickets or passes for the party were sold through a popular app and also offline. "The revellers were not informed about the permission status before accepting their payments for entries. Even the DJ was not informed about it. If any person who paid the entry fee wants to register a complaint, then police are ready to act on it," said Borade. He added that the owner and the party organisers can be booked for fraud if any reveller comes forward with a complaint.
The crime branch team of senior inspector Sandeep Buwa, under DCP Rahul Maknikar, carried out the raid. Cops said around 500-1,000 revellers were partying when their squad barged into the place following a tip-off. "We also apprehended a person for selling beer bottles from a car at the parking slot," said Buwa.
Sources stated a female suspect allegedly involved in selling intoxicants fled the scene during the raid. "Police found only a few liquor bottles, as most were quickly hidden or destroyed," said the source.