135 more arrested, Ludhiana trader’s godown sealed

INQUIRY BEGINS

CHANDIGARH: Punjab Police on Thursday arrested 135 persons in state-wide raids on illicit liquor mafia, busting several modules.

A total of 284 drums of methanol were seized from the Millar Ganj (Ludhiana) godown of key accused Rajiv Joshi, who had sold the three drums that had triggered the chain of deaths in three districts in one of the state’s worst such cases.

Director General of Police Dinkar Gupta (DGP) Dinkar Gupta said the raids will continue in the coming days.

CM TO BE IN TARN TARAN TODAY

Amarinder will visit Tarn Taran on Friday to meet families of the victims of spurious liquor tragedy which has claimed 113 lives so far.

71 FAMILIES HANDED OVER ₹2L EX GRATIA

Punjab cabinet ministers Sukhbinder Singh Sarkaria and Balbir Singh Sidhu on Thursday distributed cheques of Rs 2 lakh to each to 71 families, who had lost somebody in the hooch tragedy. The government had announced

Rs 2 lakh ex gratia. The toll is 113.

191 BOTTLES OF ILLICIT LIQUOR RECOVERED

The Punjab Police registered 12 cases under the Excise Act and recovered 530 litres of lahan and 191 bottles of illicit liquor here on Thursday. Senior superintendent of police (SSP) Vikramjeet Singh Duggal said at least nine people had been arrested for distilling illicit liquor.

A Ludhiana resident, Rajwant Singh, recovered 15 cases of liquor meant for sale in Haryana.

AMRITSAR: Jalandhar divisional commissioner Raj Kamal Chaudhary on Thursday initiated an inquiry into the hooch tragedy that has claimed 113 lives in Tarn Taran, Amritsar and Gurdaspur districts.

He said that no suspected person irrespective of his or her affiliation to any political party or rank in any government department will be out of the probe’s purview. “The responsibility of everyone