Tamil Nadu hooch tragedy: Death toll rises to 38; Tamil Nadu CM M K Stalin orders judicial probe

CHENNAI: The death toll in the Kallakurichi hooch tragedy rose to 38 on Thursday. The victims include four women and a transgendered person.
Chief minister M K Stalin ordered a commission of inquiry headed by Madras high court retired judge Justice P Gokuldas and announced an ex-gratia of ₹10 lakh to the families of each victim and ₹50,000 to those undergoing treatment.
BJP state unit president K Annamalai urged Union home minister Amit Shah to order a CBI probe into the incident. The state govt, meanwhile, transferred the case to CB-CID.
Scores of people who drank the illicit brew are being treated at govt hospitals in Kallakurichi, Salem, Villpuram and JIPMER in Puducherry. The condition of 24 people is critical.
Commission report in three months
Another 118, including four women, are being treated as in-patients. Sports minister Udhayanidhi Stalin visited Kallakurichi hospital and later handed over govt’s relief fund to kin of victims.
Expressing “shock and sadness”, CM Stalin said the commission would investigate factors leading to the deaths and recommend measures to prevent future occurrences. “The commission will conduct a thorough probe into the incident and submit its report within three months,” Stalin said.
Amid rising death toll, Stalin instructed the home secretary and DGP to rush to Kallakurichi and conduct a probe before submitting a report in two days.