BHOPAL: Authorities in Madhya Pradesh’s Sagar district have demolished illegal structures linked to three accused in the hooch tragedy, in which the death toll rose to 16 on Thursday following another fatality during treatment.
Sagar Superintendent of Police Anurag Sujania said the demolished structures belonged to accused Manish Lodhi, Ashish Sahu and Chandrabhan Singh. While Lodhi and Sahu are absconding, Singh has been arrested, he said.
The action came as police continued their investigation into the brewing and distribution of spurious liquor in the district. Police have so far arrested 16 of the 30 accused named in the case, while one person has been detained.
District Collector Pratibha Pal said one more victim died while undergoing treatment, taking the death toll to 16. Another 32 people are currently being treated at different hospitals, with one of them in serious condition.
Police said the victims had consumed spurious liquor that was allegedly sold under the label of ‘Sagar Gold’, a locally available low-cost whisky.
The investigation has also led authorities to an alleged illegal liquor brewing facility. Sujania said police had “unearthed the hooch factory”, but declined to provide further details.
Police sources said empty bottles and labels bearing the ‘Sagar Gold’ name, besides material allegedly used for brewing liquor, were recovered from the facility during a search on Wednesday.
Police have also alleged the involvement of Ravi Lakhera, a member of a gang from Uttar Pradesh’s Lalitpur, in brewing the spurious liquor in Sagar. Lakhera, who lives in Gangapuram Colony under Kotwali police station limits in Lalitpur, is absconding, Sujania said. He originally hails from Mahoba district, where his parents reside.
Sagar shares a substantial boundary with Lalitpur, officials said.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav has ordered a judicial inquiry into the tragedy to ensure an impartial investigation and fix responsibility. The decision was taken on Wednesday after Yadav returned from Dubai.
The chief minister also directed recently posted senior IAS officer Dilip Kumar to take charge as Sagar divisional commissioner and appointed senior IPS officer Irshad Wali as Inspector General of the Sagar range.
Yadav had earlier said that negligence or irregularities in serious cases would not be tolerated at any level.