Kohima, Sep 26: At least 19 people have died in Nagaland Mokokchung and Tuensang districts over the past two days after allegedly consuming suspected spurious liquor, prompting police to launch a probe into the source and supply chain of the illicit alcohol, officials said on Saturday. As many as 19 people have been arrested in connection with the hooch tragedy till now.

A police official in Kohima said eight deaths were reported in Mokokchung district and 11 in Tuensang district.

He said that a Special Investigation Team (SIT), headed by Additional Superintendent of Police, Bunglang Chang, has been constituted to investigate the deaths and trace the source of the suspected adulterated liquor.

“Some leads have been obtained, but it is too premature to disclose details,” the official said.

Samples of the liquor have been sent to a laboratory in Guwahati for forensic examination to ascertain the cause of the deaths, he said.

Following the fatalities, police conducted raids at multiple locations and arrested 19 people, while nearly 3,000 bottles of liquor were seized.

Nagaland has had a prohibition law in force since 1990, although the consumption and illegal sale of liquor continue to pose challenges in the state.

Police have, on a number of occasions, advised people against consuming unidentified, unlabelled or suspected illicit liquor and urged anyone experiencing symptoms such as dizziness, blurred vision, breathing difficulties or loss of consciousness after consuming alcohol to seek immediate medical attention.

The investigation is underway.

Meanwhile, earlier this month at least nine people, including three members of a family, died at the Tuensang Civil Hospital in Nagaland after allegedly consuming suspected spurious liquor, prompting the state police to issue a red alert and urge people to refrain from consuming liquor from unknown or unauthorised sources.

Police officials had said that the victims reportedly complained of breathlessness after consuming the suspected adulterated liquor and subsequently died.

Nagaland Director General of Police (DGP) Rupin Sharma had said that the victims reportedly succumbed to what is suspected to be spurious liquor. An official release had said that a total of nine deaths were reported in Tuensang Town and Chendang Saddle on September 10 and 11.

Preliminary enquiries revealed that in most of the cases, the deceased had reportedly consumed liquor before developing symptoms such as blurred vision, severe headache, dizziness, nausea and vomiting.

Widespread information dissemination and public awareness efforts have also been undertaken to alert people about the potential risks associated with consuming liquor obtained from unknown, unauthorised or suspected adulterated sources, a police official said.

Patna, Sep 26: Kishanganj police have arrested one person and launched a search for others after a video allegedly showing a young woman being assaulted and verbally abused near Tulsia Halt railway station in the Dighalbank police station area was sent to Superintendent of Police (SP) Santosh Kumar.

According to police, the video was received on the SP’s WhatsApp at around 12:30 a.m. on September 25.

The SP immediately directed the technical team to examine the footage.

The preliminary investigation indicated that the incident had taken place near Tulsia Halt railway station, police said.

A Special Investigation Team (SIT) was subsequently constituted under the leadership of Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO)-02, and raids were launched at suspected locations to identify and apprehend those allegedly involved.

Police said the video appears to be approximately four to five months old.

The footage allegedly shows several youths taking a young woman into a house, followed by an altercation in which she was allegedly subjected to verbal abuse and physical assault.

After receiving the video, the SP directed a police team to inspect the suspected location and ordered immediate action.

Based on the technical examination of the footage and other Intelligence inputs, police initially identified several suspects.

They were identified as Afsar alias Hati, son of Tajmul and a resident of Mustafaganj; Zuber Khan, son of Md Basir and a resident of Shripur; Mizan alias Salman, son of Jahagir and a resident of Dahibhanga; Kamil, son of Ashauddin and a resident of Muharar Toli; and Shahnaz, son of Sabir and a resident of Janirpasti Dahibhanga.

Police said preliminary verification indicated that some of the identified suspects are currently living outside Bihar.

Afsar alias Hati is reportedly residing in Gujarat, Zuber Khan in Haryana, Mizan alias Salman in Karnataka and Kamil in Punjab.

Efforts are underway to verify the whereabouts of the remaining suspects.

Police said the woman has been identified and her statement has been recorded during the investigation.

According to her statement, she had gone to the railway station to meet a friend when she was allegedly noticed by some youths from nearby villages.

The youths allegedly made objectionable remarks and assaulted her.

Police said a village-level panchayat meeting was subsequently held in the presence of the village Mukhiya in an attempt to resolve the dispute.

Based on the woman’s complaint and statement, an FIR has been registered, and further investigation is underway.

Police are also examining the roles of other individuals who may have been involved.

Acting on the evidence gathered during the investigation, Kishanganj police arrested one of the named accused, identified as Shahzad, aged around 21, a resident of Shabbir Tola, Jagir Dahibhat, under Dighalbank police station.

Shahzad was arrested in Dighalbank and is currently being interrogated, police said.

Meanwhile, raids are continuing at suspected hideouts to apprehend the other accused.

Investigators are using technical evidence as well as human Intelligence to trace those allegedly involved in the incident.

SP Santosh Kumar said that all individuals found to be involved would face legal action in accordance with the law after their roles are established during the investigation.

New Delhi, Sep 26: The Special Staff of Central District Police, under Operation Kavach, has arrested a 36-year-old man for possessing and selling prohibited medicines illegally from a medical store near Turkman Gate.

The accused has been identified as Afsan, a resident of Chandni Mahal, Delhi. Police said 14 bottles of codeine syrup, 55 tablets of Alprazolam (Alzomac) and 43 capsules of Spasmed were recovered from his possession.

According to police, the action followed secret information received by the Special Staff on September 25 regarding the illegal possession and sale of prohibited medicines at a medical store near Turkman Gate.

Acting on the information, a dedicated police team conducted a decoy operation at Al Madina Medicos, Shop No. 2293, near Two Bhai Hotel, Turkman Gate. A decoy customer was sent to the shop to purchase codeine syrup.

The suspect sold one bottle of codeine syrup to the decoy customer without asking for a valid doctor’s prescription. Following the pre-decided signal from the decoy customer, the police team raided and searched the premises.

During the search, the prohibited medicines were recovered from the accused. A Drug Inspector was called to the spot, and the recovered medicines were seized as per the prescribed procedure.

Police said the Special Staff team had been tasked with developing Intelligence and taking strict action against persons involved in the illegal sale and distribution of narcotic or prohibited substances as part of efforts to curb organised crime.

The team comprised SI Naresh, HC Mohit, HC Munesh, HC Vikas, HC Inderjeet, Constables Ajay and Lokesh, and ASI Dev Kishan. The team worked under the supervision of the In-charge, Special Staff, Central District, and the overall supervision of ACP/Operations, Central District, Padam Singh Rana.

Police said secret informers had been deployed in the area to gather information about the illegal sale of prohibited medicines. The specific information subsequently led to the decoy operation and arrest of the accused.

Afsan was taken on one-day police custody remand for further investigation. During interrogation, he was questioned about the source, procurement and distribution of the prohibited medicines.

A case has been registered under FIR No. 463/2026 under Sections 22/25 of the NDPS Act at Chandni Mahal Police Station, dated September 25.

Police said the accused has no previous criminal involvement. Efforts are underway to identify other persons involved in the supply chain and to trace the source of the recovered medicines.

Further investigation is in progress to identify and apprehend other accused persons and dismantle the network involved in the illegal sale and distribution of prohibited medicines.