Surat Suspected Hooch Tragedy:ATS team begins probe

Gandhinagar/Surat: Even as the 3 member panel led by ADGP V M Pargi constituted to investigate the suspected hooch tragedy of Surat, which has caused at least 21 deaths so far, submitted its report yesterday, the other probe team under ATS SP Himanshu Shukla today started its inquiry in the matter from a different angle.

The ATS team constituted on the instructions of Chief Minister Vijay Rupani two days ago will focus mainly on finding out the supply chain of poisnous methyl alcohol or methenol, the substance which made the spurious liquor deadly. It will also trace the criminal gangs behind hooch manufacturing and supply of methenol.

The ATS team will also try to investigate whether there was any link between the supply of the deadly methnol from South Gujarat to Mumbai a few months ago which had caused another hooch tragedy there and the recent incident in and around Vareli village of Surat. Methonol was also the main content of the spurious liquor consumed during the 2009 hooch tragedy of Ahmedabad.

Earlier the 3 member committee set up by the Gujarat government to probe the suspected hooch tragedy related deaths had submitted its report yesterday.

The three-member panel, headed by Additional Director General of Police (Law & Order) V.M. Pargi with Prohibition & Excise Department Director B.K. Kumar, and Forensic Science Laboratory Director M.S. Dahiya as other two members had visited the hospitals here where the affected people were admitted and taken their statements. The team also visited Vareli village from where most of the deceased belonged, to take a first hand account of the incident and held meetings with senior police and administrative officials.

Though the details of the report has not yet been made public, it is learnt that the panel has confirmed that the deaths were result of consumption of spurious liquor containing poisonous Methyl Alcohol or Methanol.

The state government has transferred the then Surat IGP and rural SP even as three policemen including the PI of Kakodara GIDC police station were already put under suspension as a punitive measure in the wake of the incident.

DeshGujarat