CHANDIGARH: The death toll in the Amritsar hooch tragedy has risen to 21, with 10 others hospitalised after consuming spurious liquor in five villages of the Majitha area in Punjab.
Ten people, including the main supplier and the alleged kingpin, were arrested in connection with the incident. Along with the suspension of four officers: Deputy Superintendent of Police, Station House Officer (SHO), besides Majitha sub-division excise and taxation officer (ETO) and excise inspector.
Sources revealed that the deceased include youths from Bhangali, Patalpuri, Marari Kalan, Therewal, and Talwandi Ghuman villages. With the condition of ten others critical, the death toll may rise. The victims have been admitted to Amritsar Civil Hospital. Police have launched an investigation into the source of the illicit liquor.
Residents of other villages, including Bhullar, Tangra, and Sandha, are also reported to have consumed the same spurious liquor, with many experiencing severe symptoms such as vomiting.
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann met the families of the victims at Marari Kalan and announced Rs 10 lakh in compensation to the kin of the deceased. He also assured that the state government will cover the full cost of education for the victims' children.
Likewise, he said that every possible help in terms of jobs and others will also be extended to these families in this hour of grief.
Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said the state government will not spare anyone involved in the sale of spurious liquor, regardless of their influence."These deaths are not merely accidents but they are murders, which have been caused due to greed of certain individuals, who are involved in this crime, the state government will not allow the culprits to escape the severest of severe punishment,’’ he said.
He also emphasised that such a crime cannot occur without political patronage from powerful politicians, adding that this angle is currently being investigated by the police.
Mann said that the police have also identified the forward and backward linkages of the nexus involved in this barbaric crime. “Let me tell one thing very clearly, my government is firmly committed to ensure justice to the helpless families by ensuring exemplary punishment to the accused,’’ he added.
He stated that the nexus behind the tragedy has links extending to Delhi and assured that everyone involved will be jailed. He also revealed that the perpetrators had ordered 600 litres of methanol online, likely used to produce the spurious liquor responsible for the deaths.
Punjab Director General of Police Gaurav Yadav said the arrested kingpin behind the hooch tragedy has been identified as Sahib Singh. The main methanol suppliers have been named as Pankaj Kumar alias Sahil and Arvind Kumar, owners of Sahil Chemicals in Sukh Enclave, Ludhiana.
Police have also arrested local distributors Prabhjit Singh and Kulbir Singh, along with local sellers Ninder Kaur, Sahib Singh, Gurjant Singh, Arun alias Kala, and Sikander Singh alias Pappu.
DGP Gaurav Yadav stated that preliminary investigations revealed methanol procured online by Sahib Singh was used to manufacture spurious liquor. He added that a thorough probe is underway to uncover the full modus operandi and ensure all those involved are brought to justice.
He informed that DSP Subdivision Majitha Amolak Singh and SHO of Majitha Police Station, Sub-Inspector Avtar Singh, have been suspended for gross negligence in performing their duties, which led to the fatal incident. Departmental inquiries have also been initiated against the officers, he added.
Senior Superintendent of Police of Amritsar (Rural) Maninder Singh said that the police received information around 9:30 pm last night that people had started dying after consuming spurious liquor.
"The police took action immediately and arrested the alleged accused, including the main supplier, Parabjit Singh. After his questioning the main kingpin Sahib Singh was also arrested. Four other accused, who bought liquor from the suppliers and distributed to the villages, have also been arrested,"he stated.
“We are investigating all the firms from which the accused sourced the liquor. The suppliers ordered the chemical online, and local distributors then manufactured the illicit liquor, packed it, and sold it to daily wage workers,” said the official. He added that police teams have been dispatched to other states to apprehend the suppliers.
Two separate FIRs have been registered, one at Police Station Majitha and another at Police Station Kathunangal in Amritsar Rural, under Sections 105 and 103 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), Section 61A of the Excise Act, and Section 3 of the SC/ST Act.
Singh stated that the primary accused, Prabhjit Singh, was a notorious bootlegger. Investigations revealed that Singh received methanol in 50-litre jerry cans from the kingpin, Sahib Singh, which was then diluted with water to create 120 litres of the dangerous concoction for sale.
During questioning, Singh admitted to ordering the methanol from Sahil Chemicals, a Ludhiana-based chemical firm, via an online platform. The probe also uncovered that another methanol consignment, ordered by Sahib Singh from a Delhi-based firm, is currently in transit.
Excise and police teams have been dispatched to seize the consignment upon arrival. Singh assured that all culprits involved in the racket will be arrested.
Deputy Commissioner of Amritsar Sakshi Sawhney visited the hospital to take stock of situation and confirmed the death toll, which authorities claim is likely to increase.
"An unfortunate tragedy has happened in Majitha area. We got to know yesterday night that in five villages, people have died after taking illicit liquor and many of them are critical. The medical teams were rushed to the spot and these teams are still going door-to-door and checking whether people have some symptoms or not, we are taking them to the hospital so that we can save them. The government is extending all the help possible," she said.
A police official said, "In the preliminary investigation it has come to light that the deceased bought liquor from a single source on Sunday evening. While a few of them died yesterday morning, and locals cremated them without informing the police. We received information about the deaths due to liquor in the late evening and initiated an investigation.”
A hooch tragedy took place give years ago in Tarn Taran, Amritsar and Gurdaspur districts in which some130 people had died and around a dozen had lost their vision after allegedly consuming spurious liquor in these three districts. This tragic event has once again raised concerns over the unchecked circulation of spurious liquor in rural parts of the state.