Key accused in May 28 Aligarh hooch case arrested
Aligarh (UP): The key accused in the last month's Aligarh hooch incident, which has claimed at least 35 lives so far, was nabbed in the early hours of Sunday, police said.
Accused Rishi Sharma, who carried a reward of Rs 1 lakh on his arrest, was held near Bulandshahr border in western Uttar Pradesh, Aligarh Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Kalanidhi Naithani said.
Sharma, whom the police described as the kingpin of the liquor mafia, was named in 13 different cases connected to the recent liquor tragedy, and was nabbed this morning on the Aligarh-Bulandshshar border as he was about to slip out of the district after being holed up in his hideouts since the past nine days.
On Saturday, the police had raised the bounty on Sharma from Rs 75,000 to Rs 1 lakh. His wife, son, two brothers and a nephew were arrested in the last five days.
The search for Sharma was extended to half a dozen neighbouring states and several districts, where he had his network.
The police were tracking over 500 cell phone numbers belonging to his close circle. Police were tipped off on Saturday night that Sharma would be travelling to Bulandshshar in an SUV.
He was nabbed in his vehicle, which was carrying a large cache of spurious liquor, police said.
Nearly 50 people have died in Aligarh since consuming spurious liquor on two different occasions recently, according to police, while officials estimated that the death toll could go up to 100 as autopsy reports of another 50 hooch consumers were awaited.
"In a major breakthrough in the hooch incident, key accused and Rs 1 lakh rewardee Rishi Sharma has been arrested from near Bulandshahr border," Naithani said.
"Earlier, the police had arrested accused Vipin Yadav, with Rs 50,000 reward on his arrest, and Rishi Sharma's brother Munish Sharma carrying a bounty of Rs 25,000 in this case," the SSP said.
The district police chief said so far 17 FIRs have been lodged and 61 accused arrested in Aligarh over the deaths of people after consuming spurious liquor.
Multiple police teams, he said, have carried out investigation and searches in six states since the case came to light while a crackdown on the liquor mafia also started in Aligarh.
Nine people died after consuming spurious liquor found dumped in a canal near Rohera village in Jawan area, officials said on Friday.
Another man died on Friday in Aligarh's Kodiyagunj village and officials link it with the same stock of liquor found in the canal near Rohera village on June 2 by some brick kiln workers.
The 10 fatalities are apart from people killed in the first tragedy which broke out on May 28, in which 35 people are confirmed to have died of liquor poisoning.
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Sujit Nair raises concerns over speculation of DMK-AIADMK understanding to block TVK
Chennai: Journalist and political commentator Sujit Nair has expressed concern over speculation that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam could explore a post-poll understanding to prevent Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam from forming the government in Tamil Nadu.
In a social media post, Sujit Nair said the election verdict in Tamil Nadu reflected a clear public demand for political change and argued that the mandate should be respected irrespective of political preferences.
Referring to reports and political discussions surrounding a possible understanding between the DMK and AIADMK, he said he hoped such developments remained only speculative conversations and did not turn into reality.
Nair stated that if such an alliance were to take shape, it would raise serious questions about ideological politics in the country. He said TVK had emerged through a democratic electoral process and that the legitimacy to govern in a parliamentary democracy comes from the people’s verdict.
According to him, attempts to prevent an electoral winner from forming the government through unexpected political arrangements may be constitutionally valid, but many people could view them as politically opportunistic.
He further said that such a move could particularly affect the political image of the DMK, which has historically projected itself around ideology, social justice and opposition politics. Nair said that in ideological terms, the DMK appeared closer to TVK than to the AIADMK, and joining hands with its long-time political rival only to remain in power could weaken its broader political narrative.
He added that the same questions would apply to the AIADMK as well, as the party had spent decades positioning itself against the DMK and such an arrangement could create discomfort among its cadre and supporters.
Drawing a comparison with Maharashtra politics in 2019, Nair said he had expressed similar views when the Shiv Sena formed an alliance with the Indian National Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party after the Assembly elections.
He said post-poll alliances between long-standing political rivals often create a public perception that ideology and electoral mandates become secondary when political power equations come into play.
Nair also said such developments increase public cynicism towards politics and reinforce the belief among voters that ideology is often sidelined after elections.
He maintained that the Tamil Nadu verdict was emphatic and said respecting both the spirit and substance of the mandate was important for the credibility of democratic politics.
