Family members of people undergoing treatment after consuming spurious liquor, at a hospital in Saharanpur

MEERUT/HARIDWAR: With six more deaths in Uttar Pradesh and three in Haridwar, the death toll in the hooch tragedy rose to 116 on Sunday. Besides, another 16 - four in UP and 12 in Uttarakhand - are critical. The death toll in UP's Saharanpur has now touched 70, while Uttarakhand has counted 36 dead so far. Kushinagar in eastern UP has seen 10 deaths so far.

Even as Samajwadi Party (SP) and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) blamed the ruling BJP in both states for the deaths, UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath said he smelt "a conspiracy" in which the SP may be involved.

Adityanath, from his home turf Gorakhpur, warned of stern action against all those found involved in illicit liquor trade even if they were associated with any political party.

"In the past too, such type of mischievous acts by SP leaders had come to fore. In Azamgarh, Hardoi, Kanpur and Barabanki, SP leaders were found to be involved in past hooch tragedies. We can't deny conspiracy this time too," Yogi told said.

Akhilesh Yadav slammed the Yogi government while BSP chief Mayawati demanded a CBI probe. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, the newly appointed general secretary in charge of eastern UP, also demanded the BJP governments to ensure strict punishment to those responsible for the hooch tragedy and provide adequate compensation to the families of the deceased.

Meanwhile, major protests erupted in Saharanpur district when hundreds of men and women blocked the Saharanpur-Muzaffarnagar highway in Gagalhedi area for hours on Sunday. A group of women attacked and vandalised a country-made liquor shop in Saharanpur's Gagalhedi area on Sunday. The agitators lit a bonfire of hundreds of liquor pouches.



In Video: Illicit liquor kills 32 across Uttar Pradesh