3 die after consuming 'poisonous' drink in Gujarat; cops rule out spurious liquor

NADIAD: Three persons have died after consuming a drink, suspected to be poisonous, in Nadiad city of Gujarat's Kheda district, police said on Monday.

The three persons consumed the drink from a soda bottle in Jawahar Nagar locality of Nadiad at around 7 pm on Sunday and fell unconscious. They were rushed to a civil hospital where they were declared dead, Deputy Superintendent of Police VR Bajpai said.

Police have ruled it out to be a case of spurious liquor consumption, after no trace of methanol was found in the FSL (forensic science laboratory) examination.

Efforts were underway to find out the poisonous substance in the liquid that caused the immediate deaths, Kheda Superintendent of Police Rajesh Gadhiya said.

"One of the victims died soon after consuming the drink, while two others died within 5-10 minutes. We sent their blood samples to the forensic laboratory, which has ruled out the presence of methanol, the chemical used in spurious liquor," he said.

"Prima facie, the FSL has suggested that there is likelihood of the presence of some poisonous element in the liquid which caused the immediate death. The bottles which were discarded at the site where they consumed the liquid have been collected and sent for forensic examination," he said.

The blood samples and viscera of the victims collected during post-mortem and bottles collected from the site have been sent for forensic examination to ascertain the exact cause of the deaths, the SP said.

The official said they were investigating whether the soda bottle which a victim, identified as Kanubhai Chauhan, brought for consumption was given to him by somebody, or whether he bought it from a shop.

"The person who brought the soda bottle offered it to another person (eyewitness in the case) and a child present there, but they refused to consume it. Two others who agreed to consume the drink died along with him (the one who offered them)," he said.

The police have as of now registered a case of accidental death and further investigation is underway.

"Our main focus is on the nature of chemical present in the liquid and from where it was brought," the official said.

Nadiad civil hospital's medical superintendent Dr Kavita Shah said the exact cause of the deaths could not be ascertained in the post-mortem.

Reports of the blood samples, viscera of the victims and the liquid consumed by them sent for examination will make things clear, she said.

"Eyewitnesses have said the victims consumed a liquid from a soda bottle, but it is clinically not possible to ascertain the cause of deaths (from the autopsy)," she said.

The victims, all residents of Nadiad, have been identified as Kanu Chauhan (59), Ravindra Rathod (50) and Yogesh Kushwah (40).

In November 2023, several persons died after consuming an ayurvedic syrup containing methyl alcohol, sold over the counter at a grocery shop, near Nadiad in Kheda district.

People consume such drinks for intoxication in Gujarat, where liquor is banned.