Post-mortem reveals 25 people died of alcohol poisoning in Aligarh

Post-mortem reports of bodies of 25 people who died after consuming spurious liquor in Aligarh indicate deaths due to alcohol poisoning, Aligarh district chief medical officer said on Sunday.

“We have conducted postmortem of 51 bodies. The findings in 25 of them are more suggestive of alcohol poisoning. Viscera of 26 have been kept and samples have been sent to Agra for testing. The reports are awaited,” ANI quoted Aligarh district CMO Dr B.P.S. Kalayani as saying.

Six people have been arrested in the case so far. Three cases have been files in which charges ranging from culpable homicide to assault. The Yogi Adityanath government has announced financial assistance of Rs 5 lakh to the families of the deceased.

On Saturday, District Magistrate Chandra Bhushan Singh said that a probe into the matter was initiated and will likely invoke the National Security Act (NSA) against those found guilty in the inquiry.

Three officials of the excise department, including District Excise Officer Dhiraj Sharma, have been suspended in connection with the deaths of people after allegedly consuming liquor sold by licensed vendors in Aligarh. Also, Aligarh ADG Rajeev Krishna on Friday said that one main accused Anil Chaudhary was arrested and a further probe in the matter was underway.

Meanwhile, Excise Minister Ram Naresh Agnihotri promised that the culprits will not go unpunished. “A reward has also been announced on the culprit. The Chief Minister has given instructions to deal with the liquor mafias in all the districts,” he said.

But Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee President Ajay Kumar Lallu blamed the Yogi government for the deaths, accusing it of providing protection to the liquor mafia in the state. In order to save big liquor mafia, action has been taken on junior excise officials, he said.

These liquor consumption-related deaths are not new to Uttar Pradesh. On 28 April, five persons died after allegedly consuming country-made liquor in Nagla Singhi village of Hathras. A month earlier, on 22 March, four persons died allegedly after consuming spurious liquor at a village in the Rajapur area of Chitrakoot in the state, the police said.

WITH ANI INPUTS