The Congress on Saturday (Saturday 24, 2026) accused the Madhya Pradesh Government of shielding the liquor mafia after the Dewas district administration dismissed the claims made by residents of two villages that at least 10 people had died there due to consuming spurious liquor in the past few weeks. 

Residents of Chandana and Binjana villages in Dewas have alleged that they have lost several members to spurious liquor, while many have had their vision damaged. State Congress president Jitu Patwari also visited the village.  

The matter came to light after a local Hindi daily reported that nine people had died in Chandana and four in Binjana since September 27, after which Mr. Patwari visited the affected families. 

Mr. Patwari, however, claimed that around 22 people have died so far in Chandana and nearby villages.

“Recently in Sagar district [in September] and before that in Morena [in 2021], people died due to poisonous liquor but the government did not learn a lesson. After talking to people, around 22 deaths have been verified in Chandana and nearby villages of Dewas due to spurious liquor. At least 35-40 people have had an impact on their vision,” Mr. Patwari told reporters in Dewas. 

He said that he spoke to the in-charge Collector Dalip Kumar, who told him that “it was yet to be ascertained if the water was poisonous or the liquor”. 

​Drinking to death: On illicit liquor cases

“But the families are saying that these people had passed away or damaged their vision after drinking alcohol only. If there was something wrong with the water, why did only those who consumed liquor die? Despite that, if the administration tried to hide it, there cannot be greater sin then,” Mr. Patwari said.

“This means the government want to protect the liquor mafia who sell poisonous liquor and kill people. What were the police doing when counterfeit liquor was being sold in the area?” he alleged, demanding removal of the District Collector.  

Highlighting the mass deaths in various tragedies across Madhya Pradesh in the past year, like Indore, Chhindwara and Balaghat, the Congress leader said that the State had become the “biggest den of mass deaths”.

The district administration has, however, denied that the deaths were caused by the liquor while attributing them to regular illnesses and overdose of legal liquor. 

In a fact-check statement late on Friday (October 23, 2026), the administration said that no case of a person being admitted to any hospital due to spurious liquor has been reported in the district. 

“Liquor seized during the investigation was from licensed shops, and chemical tests and post-mortems did not confirm the presence of poison. No patient was admitted to any health centre or hospital in the district or nearby for cases of consumption of poisonous liquor, visual impairment, or poisoning,” it said, terming local news reports as “misleading”.

Mr. Kumar, the Dewas Municipal Commissioner who is currently in-charge Collector, told reporters that viscera samples of the deceased who underwent post-mortem examinations have been sent for forensic testing to ascertain the causes of deaths.

“Any legal action will be taken if the FSL reports confirm that the liquor consumed by the deceased was spurious. The Excise department is also collecting samples of liquor bottles from the area to conduct tests,” he said, adding that action will be taken against those responsible if the test reports confirm poisonous material in the liquor. 

Meanwhile, Kavita Parmar, wife of the deceased Rahul Parmar, said, “He died after consuming alcohol. He had consumed alcohol, after which he passed away. He used to drink only a little. He had never experienced chest pain or vomiting before, but this time he did. The liquor shop here should be shut down. What happened to me should not happen to anyone else.”

His father, Ram Chandra Parmar, said that his son also had “foam coming out of his mouth” after he collapsed due to dizziness. “When some officials came and asked me about his death, I told them that my son had died due to alcohol only,” he told a wire agency. 

Taking cognisance of news reports, Ujjain Divisional Commissioner Asheesh Singh late on Saturday (October 24, 2026) formed an investigation committee to probe the alleged deaths in Chandana and Binjana villages in the past one month.

The five-member panel headed by Ujjain Additional Collector Pratham Kaushik has been asked to conduct a detailed investigation into the causes of death, circumstances and other facts of the matter, and submit its report within 15 days.

The panel includes all officials from outside Dewas, including an Additional Superintendent of Police, a sub-divisional magistrate, and one senior official each from the Excise and Health departments.

Earlier in September, more than 25 people had died in Sagar district’s Banda and Shahgarh subdivisions after drinking counterfeit liquor made under the name of a popular brand in the region.  

Published – October 25, 2026 02:30 am IST