Amid alleged liquor deaths in Madhya Pradesh’s Dewas, police nab 10 for illicit trade

Days after locals alleged the death of around 13 people in a month due to consuming spurious liquor, the police in Madhya Pradesh’s Dewas district have arrested 10 people for allegedly selling illicit liquor in the region, officers said on Monday (October 26, 2026).

According to the police, the crackdown was launched based on information from the district hospital about the deaths of two people on October 15 and 18, whose families alleged that they died after consuming liquor. The 10 accused have been booked under Section 34(2) of the Madhya Pradesh Excise Act, 1915.

The crackdown comes days after Ujjain Divisional Commissioner Asheesh Singh formed a five-member special panel to carry out a detailed probe into the alleged deaths in Chandana and Binjana villages. The Dewas district administration, however, had earlier dismissed new reports and Congress claims, denying any deaths related to spurious liquor while saying that the samples of the two deceased who underwent post-mortem examinations have been sent for forensic tests for clarity. It also said that various liquor samples tested following locals’ allegations were not found to contain poisonous contents.

The locals of the two villages have claimed that 13 people have died so far since September 26. M.P. Congress president Jitu Patwai, who visited the affected villages, also alleged that about 35-40 people had damaged their vision due to spurious liquor.

Speaking to The Hindu, Dewas Superintendent of Police (SP) Punit Gehlot said that the family members of the two deceased had alleged that one Vinod Jaiswal is involved in the sale of illicit liquor in the region, after which a search was launched to nab him.

“We tracked him down today [October 26] when he was trying to flee in a car with two of his associates and arrested them,” he said, adding that seven more people were arrested based on information retrieved from them.

The arrested persons include managers and sales executives of various government-licensed liquor shops in the district, the police said in a statement. The police also seized 56 litres of country-made illicit liquor from the accused, which .

Mr. Gehlot also said that FSL test reports of the two deceased were awaited, and samples of liquor seized from the arrested persons will also be sent for testing, and further legal action will be taken based on that.

A senior district administration, however, maintained that it was “not a hooch tragedy” in the region while citing medical records to claim that many of the deceased had died due to other illnesses.

“We are not denying that a few people may have died due to liquor consumption, but the numbers are exaggerated. Family members of some of the deceased, for whom inquest proceedings were initiated, also did not make any such allegations in their initial statements. But an investigation is going on in the matter, and forensic reports will make things clear whether the liquor was spurious or not,” the official said, requesting anonymity.

Meanwhile, Congress MLA and Leader of Opposition in the State Assembly, Umang Singhar, also visited Chandana village on Monday (October 26, 2026) and sought financial aid of ₹25 lakh each for the kin of the deceased from the government. He also announced ₹50,000 for each deceased family from the Congress Legislature Party (CLP).