Public give thumbs down to arrack drive

Tirupattur: The flurry of anti-arrack drive in Vellore, Ranipet and Tirupattur districts after multiple deaths due to drinking industrial spirit in Villupuram district is only temporary and everything will be back to square one within a month, sources said.

Police officials in all three districts put out WhatsApp numbers (Tirupattur – 94981-88755, 86376-61845; Vellore and Ranipet – 94454-63494, 94981-11155) for public to provide information about distillation, transportation and sale of illicit arrack, sale of spurious liquor and liquor from Puducherry.

The messages uploaded on social media ended by stating that informers identity would be safeguarded. However, it elicited a laugh among locals in Echampattu village near Ambur and a resident quipped, “We will not provide information as prohibition officials tell distillers who informed on them and it creates trouble for us.”

It may be recalled that illicit distillers in Eachampattu village offered discounts and free eggs for purchase of liquor sachets some time ago as highlighted by this paper.

Asked about the present, sources said, “There is no illicit liquor now due to the flurry of anti-arrack activities. However, prohibition police themselves inform distillers to lie low and to provide a fall guy to appease higher ups and that everything will be back to normal in a short time. That is why the big fish are never caught but only fringe elements land in the net.”

Meanwhile B Shanmugam, ward councillor, Kurcilapet village, 12 km from Tirupattur uploaded on social media how three resolutions passed against illicit arrack on October 2 last year, January 26 and May 1 against illicit arrack was not passed on to top police officials due to the machinations of DMK functionaries.

“Ward councillors Saraswathi and Prema openly said in the meetings that lives were being affected due to illicit liquor with Prema even threatening to commit suicide if the menace was not ended due to which she was heckled by a DMK functionary in the May 1 meeting,” Shanmugam added.

Accused closely associated with Minister: BJP chief

BJP state president K Annamalai on Tuesday charged that the prime accused in Marakkanam hooch tragedy Marur Raja was affiliated to the ruling DMK and closely associated with Minister Gingee KS Masthan. Raja’s wife is 20th ward councilor in Tindivanam Municipality.

“There are several cases pending against Raja for brewing and selling illicit liquor from 2018. Since he was closely associated with the Minister, the police did not take appropriate legal action against him. He continued his illegal activity and he was arrested in April for smuggling liquor and lodged in the prison. It is learned that he continued his illegal activities from prison,” Annamalai said in a statement.

The BJP leader held that the DMK government’s incompetence resulted in the tragedy. He also posted a series of pictures of Raja with Minister Masthan in his social media post.

He further charged that the police booked a case against one D Ammavasai (40), who was a close relative of DMK’s deputy union secretary of Chithamur.

To escape from the case, he admitted himself stating that he had also consumed the illicit liquor, he said and ridiculed that the government announced compensation of Rs 50,000 to him along with other victims, who are undergoing treatment.