The death toll due to the consumption of spurious liquor in Tamil Nadu's Kallakurichi district has shot up to 61. As many as 118 people have been receiving treatment at different hospitals after the hooch tragedy unfolded in Karunapuram village on June 18.
The rise in deaths came even as the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) took a Suo moto cognizance of the same, and issued notices to the Tamil Nadu Chief Secretary and the Director-General of state police, seeking a detailed report on the incident within a week.
The National Commission for Women (NCW) has also taken suo moto cognisance of the deaths of six women in the hooch tragedy and constituted a three-member committee to inquire into the matter. The statutory body's member Khushbu Sundar will visit the families of these victims today and also those who are undergoing treatment.
The hooch tragedy, meanwhile, has triggered a political flashpoint between the ruling DMK led by Chief Minister MK Stalin and the AIADMK in the Opposition.
The AIADMK legislators were suspended for the remaining days of the assembly session, with Stalin reiterating that the state government was "ready to reply to questions".
"But opposition leaders are not accepting this, and speaking outside is not acceptable. It's done for cheap publicity," the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister said.
However, the Leader of the Opposition, Edappadi K Palaniswami, claimed the suspension was "already planned".
"We were not allowed to speak. We followed the rules, but it was rejected... We were not allowed to speak in Question Hour yesterday," Palaniswami said.
The AIADMK leader further claimed that after they walked out of the assembly on Tuesday, Stalin gave a 15-minute reply. "Our voices are being blocked," Palaniswami said.
The AIADMK MPs have been clicked wearing black shirts in the Tamil Nadu Assembly over the past few days, and were reported to raise slogans over the hooch tragedy. On Tuesday, they were suspended for a day, but now the suspension has been extended.
