Hooch tragedy: BJP govts in UP, Uttarakhand must act against offenders, says Priyanka

Newly-appointed Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi has demanded strict punishment against those responsible for causing over 100 deaths by selling spurious alcohol in the states of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

“It is hard to image that illegal trade thrived at such a large scale in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, both states where BJP is in power,” Priyanka, appointed Congress’ incharge of eastern Uttar Pradesh last month, said in a statement.

“I hope that the BJP governments would take strict action against the offenders and the relatives of the deceased are given proper compensation and government jobs,” said Priyanka.

Deaths due to consumption of inferior alcohol have been reported from Meerut, Saharanpur and Kushinagar regions of Uttar Pradesh, and Haridwar and Roorkee regions in neighbouring Uttarakhand.

At least 66 deaths have been reported from UP since Saturday, with at least 24 more deaths reported from Uttarakhand.

Uttar Pradesh Police claims it has arrested more than 130 persons in connection with the tragedy. Opposition parties, including Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), however accuse the BJP governments in both the states of not enforcing the laws to check illegal selling of alcohol properly.

"The opposition has been notifying the government about such activities, but they did not act as some of its leaders are involved. The truth is that without the backing of the government, such businesses cannot be carried out. The BJP should accept the fact that they cannot run the state," Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav earlier said.