Just days after the Amritsar hooch tragedy that killed 27 people, three more people have died after drinking liquor in the Basti Jodhewal area of Ludhiana.
The victims were identified as Rinku (40), Debi (27), and Mangoo (32), all labourers. According to the police, they drank liquor at a vacant plot near Noorwala Road on Wednesday night. Soon after drinking, they fainted and started frothing at the mouth. They were taken to the Civil Hospital, but doctors declared them dead.
Dr Harpreet Singh, a senior medical officer, said the cause of death will be confirmed after the post-mortem report.
Police Commissioner Swapan Sharma said the liquor they drank was a desi brand called “Raspberry.” Samples have been sent for testing, and an FIR has been registered against the liquor shop owner.
Officials are still trying to find out if the liquor was fake or if the victims mixed it with drugs. An officer from the Excise Department said that others who bought liquor from the same shop had no complaints. “If the liquor was bad, more people would have been affected,” the officer said.
These repeated incidents have raised doubts about the Punjab government’s anti-drug campaign, “Yudh Nasheyan Virudh.” Opposition parties have strongly criticised the AAP government.
BJP spokesperson Pritpal Singh Baliawal said, “Families are suffering while the government is busy with PR work. Their anti-drug drive is only on paper. The liquor and drug mafia is running without fear. Is this the ‘rangla Punjab’ that Kejriwal and Bhagwant Mann promised?”
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