Haryana Hooch Tragedy: Death Toll Mounts To 18 As 6 More Succumb In Yamunanagar

Officials said six more deaths were reported in Yamunanagar in Haryana in the last 24 hours where earlier 10 people had died after consuming country-made liquor while two died in Ambala.

Written by: India.com News Desk Edited by: Gazi Abbas Shahid

Published: November 11, 2023, 8:57 PM IST

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Haryana News: The death toll in a suspected hooch tragedy in Haryana climbed to 18 as six more people succumbed on Saturday after purportedly consuming poisonous spurious liquor. According to officials, six more deaths were reported in Yamunanagar in the last 24 hours where earlier 10 people had died after consuming the country-made liquor while two died in Ambala.

Yamunanagar Additional Superintendent of Police Himadree Kaushik on Saturday said, “On the basis of information which we have, a total of 16 people have died in the district so far.”

She said seven people have already been arrested in this case.

During questioning, names of some more people have come up and they will soon be arrested, the officer said.

“We have visited villages and informed villagers about this unfortunate incident,” she said.

Following the incident, the Yamunanagar police formed a special investigation team to probe the matter and arrested seven persons in connection with the case.

Police said around 200 boxes of spurious liquor were prepared in an abandoned old factory which was then supplied to some of the arrested accused in Yamunanagar, adding that they recovered 14 empty drums and the material used for making illicit liquor from the spot.

A senior police official said they are trying to find out when the accused started making the liquor and who else were involved in its manufacture.

Two other suspects were later apprehended for allegedly manufacturing the liquor illegally in the neighbouring Ambala district, Mullana SHO Surinder had said on Thursday.

“They supplied this liquor in Yamunanagar district,” the SHO added.

Among those arrested, two are local illegal vendors from Yamunanagar, the police said.

Police have asked villagers not to consume liquor whose source of procurement they were unaware of.

Opposition parties Congress, AAP and INLD have targeted the Khattar government over deaths due to suspected spurious liquor and said it has failed to learn lessons from previous incidents.

The deaths so far have taken place in Mandebari, Panjeto Ka Majra, Phoosgarh and Saran villages of Yamunanagar.

The Yamunanagar police formed a special investigation team to probe the matter.

Meanwhile, Haryana cabinet minister Kanwar Pal said the guilty in this case will not be spared and strict action will be taken against them.

Police investigation in the matter was underway, he said.