National News
Home-Made Liquor Allegedly Kills 9 In Uttar Pradesh’s Barabanki
BARABANKI (UTTAR PRADESH): At least nine people have died allegedly after consuming home-made liquor in Uttar Pradesh’s Barabanki district.
All victims, who were from different villages, had gone to a local feast on Tuesday night where they allegedly consumed moonshine after which they fell ill and died.
The district administration, however, has not confirmed the hooch angle yet. The authorities said that they will issue a statement only after the post-mortem report.
Those dealing in illicit or spurious liquor in Uttar Pradesh may face death penalty or life imprisonment after a stringent bill, passed by the state assembly, got the governor’s approval earlier this month.
Uttar Pradesh is now the third state after Delhi and Gujarat to have an Act under which bootleggers may be given death penalty, if consumption of spurious liquor leads to loss of life.
The UP Excise (Amendment) Bill, 2017, has the provisions of death penalty, life sentence and a fine to the tune of Rs. 10 lakh and not less than Rs. five lakh in case of death due to consumption of spurious liquor. It also provides for rigorous imprisonment up to ten years and not less than six years in case of disability caused by consumption of spurious liquor and fine to the tune of Rs. five lakh and not less than Rs. three lakhs.
Hooch tragedies take a heavy toll every year in Uttar Pradesh. In July, 17 people died in Azamgarh after they consumed spurious liquor. In 2015, 28 people were killed in a similar incident in the Malihabad area of Lucknow.
