Bhopal, Sep 10 (PTI) The Communist Party of India (Marxist) on Thursday accused the Madhya Pradesh government of shielding the liquor mafia and questioned the Sagar superintendent of police’s claim that the spurious liquor was supplied from Lalitpur in Uttar Pradesh.
The death toll in the Sagar hooch tragedy in Madhya Pradesh rose to 16 during the day after one more person died, while 32 others are undergoing treatment at different hospitals. Of the 30 persons shown as accused, 16 have been arrested and one detained.
In a statement, CPM state secretary Jaswinder Singh, however, claimed 32 people had died and several others were battling for life in hospitals, but the government and administration were still trying to protect those responsible for the tragedy.
He also referred to the 24 deaths in a hooch tragedy in Morena in January 2021 and recalled that the same police superintendent Anurag Sujania had been removed after that incident.
Singh also questioned the SP’s claim about the liquor being supplied from Lalitpur, alleging that a resident of Adavan village, Brijesh Maharaj, had already provided CCTV footage of the unloading and sale of illegal liquor to the Sub Divisional Officer of Police and SP months before the tragedy unfolded on Sunday.
The CPM leader claimed that the liquor mafia, with administrative protection, had damaged the CCTV cameras outside Maharaj’s house and also registered a false case against him.
Singh also raised questions over the “Ujjain connection” of the excise commissioner. He alleged that despite being present at the spot on the day of the incident (first death on Sunday), the commissioner cited social media and newspaper reports while suspending excise officials, which, he claimed, indicated an attempt to shield the accused.
Chief Minister Mohan Yadav had changed the divisional commissioner and police inspector general after visiting the affected area on Wednesday, but the SP and collector continued in their posts, Singh said.
The CPM alleged that the government’s and administration’s actions so far indicated a nexus between officials and the liquor mafia and political protection for the illegal trade. It condemned the alleged nexus and called for public resistance against it.
Meanwhile, Sagar SP Sujania told PTI that Ravi Lakhera, a member of a gang from Lalitpur in Uttar Pradesh, was allegedly involved in brewing the spurious liquor in the district.
“Lakhera, a resident of Gangapuram Colony under the Kotwali police station in Lalitpur, is absconding. He originally hails from Uttar Pradesh’s Mahoba district, where his parents still reside,” the SP added. PTI LAL BNM
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