The Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted a raid at the residence of dismissed police constable Alok Pratap Singh in Lucknow, uncovering evidence of a lavish lifestyle far beyond his declared income.
The operation, carried out in connection with the multi-crore cough syrup smuggling racket, revealed luxury items including high-end Gucci and Prada handbags, Rado watches, and other expensive possessions.
The 7,000-sq-ft home has ornate European-style interiors and spiral staircases, plus vintage-style lights. The trove of luxury items seized includes several expensive electronic devices, officials said as per a report by news agency PTI.
The Special Task Force of the Uttar Pradesh Police arrested Alok Pratap Singh, who had been dismissed from service
for the second time in 2019, on December 2.
Alok Pratap’s name came up during the interrogation of another accused, Amit Kumar Singh alias Amit ‘Tata’. He is currently lodged in the Lucknow jail.
“Preliminary assessments suggest that ₹1.5-2 crore was spent solely on interiors, while the construction of the house alone may have cost around ₹5 crore, excluding the land,” a senior police officer privy to the investigation told PTI.
“A government-approved valuer has been appointed to determine the full investment and any illicit funds involved,” the officer added.
Who Is Alok Pratap Singh?
Hailing from Chandauli, Alok Pratap Singh began his police career over two decades ago. He was arrested in 2006 in connection with a gold loot case and subsequently dismissed from service, but was later reinstated following his acquittal by the court.
New allegations of insubordination and corruption led to his second dismissal in 2019.
Afterward, he reportedly shifted to business ventures, building connections that enabled his involvement in the syrup network.
‘CBCS’ Racket
The racket, accused of laundering ₹1,000 crore, reportedly involved the sale of codeine-based cough syrups (CBCS) as intoxicants for recreational drug use.
Police allege Alok Pratap Singh was part of this network and ran wholesale cough syrup units in Uttar Pradesh and Jharkhand, from where the syrup was smuggled into other states and even across the borders into Bangladesh and Nepal.
Officials, citing PTI, said he also mentored young men from Chandauli, Ghazipur, Jaunpur, and Varanasi, using his connections in police and political circles.
The prime accused, Shubham Jaiswal, is believed to have fled to Dubai, while his father, Bhola Jaiswal, has been taken into custody.
Till now, police have seized around 3.5 lakh bottles of cough syrup, valued at approximately ₹4.5 crore, and 32 people have been taken into custody.
Authorities are examining financial transactions and money trails associated with the network, while the ED is conducting parallel investigations.
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