Seven people have died in Sundernagar town of Mandi district since Wednesday after consuming illegal spurious liquor, police said on Thursday, adding that four people have been arrested so far in connection with the case.
Five people died on Wednesday, according to police, while two others — Sita Ram of Khanyor village and Bhagat Ram — died the next day. Sita Ram died in his home after becoming ill, while Bhagat Ram was being treated at Nerchowk’s Lal Bahadur Shashtri Government Medical College and Hospital (LBSGMC).
Meanwhile, on Thursday, three more people were admitted to the LBSGMC, bringing the total number of people admitted to the hospital to five. One of them has been referred to PGI Chandigarh after being admitted to Indira Gandhi Medical College in Shimla in a critical condition.
Sub-divisional magistrate Dharmesh Kumar said ten vehicles with public address systems had been deployed in the area to raise awareness and encourage people to seek medical help if symptoms arise.
The state of Himachal Pradesh has formed a special investigation team (SIT) to look into the matter. The SIT will be led by deputy inspector general (DIG, central range) Madhududan, and its members will include SP Kangra Khushal Chand Sharma, SP Mandi Shalini Agnihotri, and SP (Crime) CID Shimla Virendra Kalia.
Shalini Agnihotri, the superintendent of police in Mandi, said the liquor store where the booze was purchased had been sealed, and two people had been arrested.
In the case, Mandi police arrested four people on Thursday, including a panchayat ex-pradhan and the relatives of a serving pradhan. Jagdish Chand, the ex-pradhan of Salapar panchayat, and Acchar Singh, the father-in-law of the panchayat’s serving pradhan, have been identified. Sohan Lal and Pradeep Kumar were named as the other two suspects. Sohan Lal was apprehended with 12 bottles of ‘Santra’ brand liquor.
All four were charged under Indian Penal Code sections 304 (culpable homicide), 308 (punishment for culpable homicide), and 120B (criminal conspiracy).
The incident sparked a political brawl, with the opposition Congress accusing the ruling BJP of harbouring the Sundernagar liquor mafia. The BJP, on the other hand, retorted that one of the accused was a member of the Congress.
Sohan Lal Thakur, a former chief parliamentary secretary and a Congress leader, claimed that illegal liquor had been sold in Sundernagar for a long time, but that the administration was “under pressure” not to take action against the mafia. He claimed that fake liquor was smuggled into Sundernagar sub-division and sold in Salapar, Kangu, Harabagh, Jarol, Pung, Mahadev, Dhanotu, Bhaur, Naulakha, Dadour, and Kanaid, among other places.
Sohan Lal claimed that this liquor was being sold in dhabas along the National Highway (NH) from Mandi to Kullu-Manali.
Meanwhile, cops discovered that the fake bourbon was being sold in its original cartons. Following the tragedy, police discovered several cartons dumped in remote locations.
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