In dry Gujarat, spurious booze kills 6 at party thrown by cop; 25 in hospital
Six people have died and 25 were hospitalized in Gujarat, India, after consuming methanol-spiked liquor at a party. The State Monitoring Cell has taken over the investigation into the illicit alcohol, which was reportedly linked to a police recruitment celebration.
Why it matters
Spurious liquor tragedies are a recurring public health crisis in India, often highlighting failures in prohibition enforcement and regulatory oversight.
RAJKOT: Six people have died and at least 25 others were hospitalized after drinking methanol-spiked liquor packaged in “Royal Stag” bottles in Bhavnagar district.Questions emerged later about an alleged delay in police reporting, which has led the State Monitoring Cell (SMC) to take over the investigation.The matter came to light around 3pm on Tuesday when 25-year-old Upendrasinh Gohil died at Sir T Hospital in Bhavnagar. A resident of Kharkadi village in Ghogha taluka, he had attended a gathering on Sunday night with friends Harpalsinh Gohil and Vishwarajsinh Gohil, where they drank what they thought was Indian-made foreign liquor (IMFL) to celebrate Vishwarajsinh’s recruitment to the police force. Vishwarajsinh remains in a critical condition at Arham Hospital in Bhavnagar.The others affected are from different parts of Bhavnagar district. Investigators suspect they got the liquor from the same chain of bootleggers.Several patients reported breathlessness and loss of vision.
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