Kallakurichi hooch tragedy updates: Death toll rises to 39, CB-CID begins probe

A day after the hooch tragedy at Karunapuram in Kallakurichi town, which has claimed 38 lives so far, the prime accused who supplied the killer brew was arrested today.

Police said the accused Chinnadurai of Sankarapuram was arrested by a CB-CID team at Kadampuliyur in Cuddalore district. He is being brought to Kallakurichi for interrogation to identify the source of the brew.

The police have already arrested bootlegger Govindaraj alias Kannukutty, his wife Vidya and brother Damodaran in connection with the incident.

- S. Prasad

The All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) announces a State-wide protest against the DMK government over the deaths in Kallakurichi due to illicit liquor. 

AIADMK leader Edappadi K. Palaniswami condemned the law and order situation in the State and demanded the resignation of Chief Minister M. K. Stalin.

Life will never be the same again for many of the residents of Karunapuram, the epicentre of the hooch tragedy in Kallakurichi town. With the death toll in one of the worst ever hooch tragedies in Tamil Nadu continuing to rise, many families who have lost their sole breadwinners are preparing for funerals - S. Prasad

The teenagers, children of a painter and a daily wage labourer, only found out that their parents had died, after watching news reports on television. All three are in school but now has no source of income and do not know how they will support themselves - S. Prasad

According to official sources, a total of 38 persons including four women and one transperson have died as of 3.30 pm on June 20, 2024.Of the total 143 persons admitted to government hospitals in Kallakurichi, Salem, Villupuram and at JIPMER in Puducherry, 105 are currently in treatment. Of them, 24 persons are said to be critical.

Makkal Needhi Maiam founder Kamal Haasan said Tamil Nadu government should crackdown on sellers of illicit liquor with iron fist.

He also said state government should immediately set up rehabilitation centres to help drug addicts. 

Now is the time for each of us to get involved in war against drug menace, Mr. Haasan said and extended his condolences to the victims of the tragedy - Sanjay Vijayakumar

Dravidar Kazhagam president K. Veeramani said the issue need not be politicised.

Priority should be on taking precautionary measures to ensure that such incidents does not happen again, he said and expressed confidence that the DMK government will take appropriate measures.

Mr Veeramani said the DMK government has acted swiftly on the issue by appointing a one-member commission to probe the incident - Sanjay Vijayakumar

Launching a scathing attack on the Stalin government over the deaths of 34 people in the Kallakurichi hooch tragedy, AIADMK general secretary Edapaddi K Palaniswami on Thursday said ruling “DMK is behind illicit liquor sales in Tamil Nadu” and drugs are being sold all over the state.

He also demanded the resignation of Chief Minister MK Stalin over the tragedy.

Addressing the press conference, the AIADMK chief said, “Nearly 200 people are affected, 133 are under treatment. One by one people are coming to the hospital. Kallakurichi is the epic centre for illicit. It’s making us sad and worrying. All dead and affected are poor and underprivileged.”

-ANI

Naam Tamilar Katchi (NTK) chief coordinator Seeman on Thursday termed the announcement of CB-CID probe into the Kallakurichi hooch tragedy as a mere eyewash.

He asked what happened to DMK government ordered CB-CID probe into similar incident in Villupuram district and what where the actions taken.

Seeman said that officials are being made scapegoats in the incident and those in power trying to escape.

He alleged that DMK men were involved in sale of illicit liquor and that is why police could not take any action and public feared to lodge complaints and such a situation is strongly condemnable.

Seeman urged Stalin who handles police portfolio to focus on curbing illicit liquor and ensure that such incidents do not happen in the future -- Sanjay Vijayakumar

Puducherry Lt Governor C.P. Radhakrishnan said the Tamil Nadu government should come down heavily on the people responsible for the deaths in the hooch tragedy. Mr. Radhakrishnan was responding to a question while interacting with mediapersons. “Such things happen when the police function without any social responsibility. The Tamil Nadu government should punish those found guilty for dereliction of duty. Efforts should also be made to find bootleggers involved in the tragedy and punish them,” he said.

The Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly, on the first day of its current session on Thursday, paid homage to the loss of lives in the hooch tragedy in Kallakurichi district.

The deadliness of spurious liquor arises from methanol. James Manor, emeritus professor of Commonwealth Studies at the University of London, wrote in December 2022, “In every hooch tragedy in the history of India – and of the world since 1945 – the poison has been methanol.”

PMK president Anbumani Ramadoss alleged that Govindaraj alias Kannukutty who sold the spurious liquor at Karunapuram in Kallakurichi had links with DMK MLAs and called for a probe.

Strict action must be taken against all those who were involved in the sale, he said in a post on X (formerly Twitter) - Sanjay Vijaykumar

In a post on his social media handle, the AMMK general secretary T.T.V. Dhinakaran stated that the incident exposed a “total failure” of the State government and the action against the District Collector and Superintendent of Police was only an “eyewash.” Instead of seeking to “cover up” its fault under the guise of carrying out searches and arrests, the government should hold an elaborate enquiry and take stringent measures against the guilty - T. Ramakrishnan

Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam party chief Vijay blamed the lax attitude of the State machinery for the Kallakurichi hooch tragedy.

A similar incident last year resulted in loss of lives and Tamil Nadu is yet to recover from that sorrow. A repeat of the incident shows lax attitude from the State, Vijay said and extended his condolences to the affected families.

He urged the State government to take strict precautionary measures to ensure that such incidents don’t happen again in the future - Sanjay Vijaykumar

Chief Minister M.K. Stalin chaired a meeting in the Secretariat in Chennai on Thursday (June 20, 2024) morning, where Health Minister Ma. Subramanian, who visited Kallakurichi district, appraised the meeting of the situation.

Ministers Duraimurugan, E.V. Velu, Udhayanidhi Stalin, S. Muthusamy, Chief Secretary Shiv Das Meena, Director-General of Police Shankar Jiwal and senior officials were present, an official release said.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin, on Thursday, June 20, 2024, constituted a one-man commission headed by Justice B. Gokuldas, former High Court judge, to conduct a thorough inquiry into the hooch tragedy in Kallakurichi that has claimed the lives of 34 persons so far.

In a statement, Mr. Stalin said the former judge would submit his recommendations to the government in three months.

Tamil Nadu BJP president K. Annamalai announced that his party would organise a State-wide protest on June 22, against the ruling DMK government for its “incompetence” in curbing the production and sale of illicit liquor.

The Madras High Court has decided to hear on Friday, June 21, 2024, two public interest litigations seeking a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the Kallakurichi spurious liquor tragedy that has so far claimed over 30 lives and left many others hospitalised.