VIJAYAWADA: The alleged hooch tragedy in West Godavari's Jangareddygudem rocked the State Assembly on Monday with TDP legislators trooping into the Well and onto the Speaker's podium, raising slogans holding the government responsible for the deaths.
As soon as the Assembly convened, placard-holding TDP MLAs raised slogans demanding a debate on the issue. The Speaker adjourned the House a couple of times, but the opposition stood firm on their demand. The acrimonious scenes culminated in the suspension of five TDP MLAs - K Atchannaidu, Gorantla Butchaiah Chowdary, Nimmala Ramanaidu, Payyavula Keshav and Dola Bala Veeranjaneya Swamy - for the remaining days of the Budget session.
Later, Deputy Chief Minister Alla Kali Krishna Srinivas (Nani), who holds the medical and health portfolio, issued a statement ruling out hooch tragedy, but clarified that the Jangareddygudem deaths were due to natural causes. Of the 18 deaths reported over a period of one week, two occurred in hospitals, the minister said, adding autopsy would be conducted to ascertain the cause of the deaths.
Later in the evening, West Godavari district collector Prasanna Venkatesh said police cases were registered in connection with only three deaths. The post-mortem reports would reveal the cause of their deaths, he added.
After Alla Nani's statement, Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy launched a broadside against TDP members, saying they were creating nuisance and politicising the deaths when the State Assembly was about to discuss the Budget proposals.
He asserted that the government was making every effort to curb liquor consumption in the State. Jagan referred to the 2011 census to drive home the point that the deaths were due to natural causes.
18 deaths did not occur at one place: CM
The census has put Jangareddygudem's population at 48,994, the CM said it might have increased 12 per cent to 58,000. Going by the population, Jangareddygudem is a municipality and the 18 reported deaths did not occur at one place, but across the town.
"If we go by the death rate of two per cent on an average per month anywhere in the country, around 90 people die of natural causes, age and accidents and 60 of them die due to natural causes. Today, we are seeing the distortion of such natural deaths," he said.
Turning the tables on the Opposition, Jagan said that "illicit production of liquor happened during Chandrababu Naidu's government and it is happening now. I am not denying it. My government has constituted a Special Enforcement Bureau to curb such illegal activities".
He said to curb the consumption of liquor, the government had closed 43,000 belt shops, besides cancelling the permissions for permit rooms to 4,380 liquor shops. The government had also hiked the liquor price, but revised it later to prevent bootlegging.
