[Mumbai]Mumbai Illicit Liquor [Hooch] toll 102,Kingpins At Large,Cong Demands CM’s Resignation
The toll in Mumbai’s worst hooch tragedy rose to 102 today with the death of five more victims who consumed spurious liquor in Malad area and another 46 are in hospitals with eight of them struggling to survive serious ill-effects of the killer brew.
Squarely blaming the BJP-led Government for the tragedy, Opposition Congress asked Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to step down owning moral responsibility and demanded a CBI inquiry into it.
So far seven persons have been arrested in the case and eight police and four excise officials suspended. All of those arrested are in police custody.
Stepping up the heat, Mumbai Congress president Sanjay Nirupam said, “Excise Minister should take responsibility of this tragedy and quit. Since the Home Department is with the Chief Minister he should also resign.”
Rattled by the tragedy that occurred at the Laxmi Nagar slum in suburban Malwani on Wednesday night, Excise Minister Eknath Khadse said the Government would bring in a harsher law to deal with the menace with provisions to ensure that those arrested for distilling and selling illicit liquor would not get bail for at least for one year after their arrest.
“Since January this year, 117 raids have been conducted in Malad and nearby areas in suburban Mumbai.Several people have been arrested. But, they have been let off on bail of Rs 2,000. The need of the hour is to make stringent laws,” he said.
Leader of Opposition in Maharashtra Legislative Assembly , Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil, who visited the kin of the victims,demanded resignation of Khadse.
“The loss of lives is also due to the negligence of the Shatabdi Hospital run by the municipal corporation,” and wanted the hospital authorities and health officer of the ward be booked for homicideLearning a lesson from one of the worst hooch tragedies that has claimed nearly 100 lives in last four days in suburban Malad, the Mumbai Police has decided to seize all stock of illicit liquor from the city’s north zone to make it ‘countrymade liquor-free’ area.