UP: 3 died, 5 ill after consuming spurious liquor in Sitapur

Three people died and five others were taken to the Community Health Centre (CHC) on Thursday in Mahmudabad area here after allegedly consuming spurious liquor.

The deceased, residents of Sadanpur village, have been identified as Vijay, Sumeri Lal and Vinod.

The incident came to light after one of the victims died after consuming illicit liquor on Sunday. "All of them consumed alcohol on Sunday and Vinod's condition started to deteriorate the next day. Though he was taken to a CHC, the doctors referred him to a hospital in Lucknow for the treatment. He took his last breath on his way to the hospital," Vinod's family told ANI.

The family and the villagers alleged that the condition of the victims worsened after consuming the illicit liquor from Patanpur village and the investigation on the matter was initiated few days after the final rituals of the victims took place here.

Meanwhile, Superintendent of police (SP) L R Kumar said, "According to the information received, the poisonous liquor was taken from a trader, identified as Kanhaiya Kumar, who is located on the Barabanki border. We are looking into the matter."

He further said, "The illicit business grow in the area due to the connivance of the Excise officials and the local police in the region. The main accused in the case will be arrested soon as separate teams are constituted to crackdown the sale of illegal liquor in the area."

Taking cognizance of the issue, Lucknow Inspector General (IG) of Police S.K. Bhagat ordered a probe into the matter.

This comes days after 23 people lost their lives in the Barabanki hooch tragedy in the state.