Five of Christian family die after drinking ‘toxic liquor’

PESHAWAR: Five members of a Christian family died while another is under treatment at a hospital after they consumed locally-made alcohol (spirit) in the TV Colony at Swati Gate on Wednesday, officials said.

According to the residents of the TV Colony located in the jurisdiction of the Pishtakhara Police Station, the deceased Nasir Masih, Qaiser Masih and Victor Masih were brothers, while the other two men, Raja and Kamal, were their relatives.

The five persons died when their condition deteriorated after consuming the liquor.The sixth person who consumed the liquor was identified as Shahzad Masih. He is under treatment at a public hospital.

The late Nasir Masih has five children while his deceased brother Qaiser Masih has three. Their third brother Victor Masih was unmarried.The relatives of the dead were in a state of shock when the bodies were brought home from the hospital.

The relatives consoled their children and other family members. The victims belonged to poor families and were sanitation workers. The local people said the dead often used to drink substandard liquor. On Tuesday night, they sat and drank together but had to be rushed to the hospital after their condition deteriorated.

Superintendent of Police (SP) Cantt Malik Imran said the chemical examination of the dead showed that the deaths were caused by consuming spirit, which is used for cleaning and is mixed with paint, combined with a carbonated drink.

He referred to the statement of one of the survivors who admitted that they consumed spirit with carbonated drink. “Two persons have already been taken into custody. Besides, crackdown is carried out in routine against the bootleggers,” the police official added.

The police said they were investigating as to what they had consumed and how they died.“The bottles they used are available at every medical store for Rs45. There is no ban or any rule for selling this form of liquor,” said the relative of the deceased sanitation workers.It may be recalled that 35 people died in Toba Tek Singh, Punjab recently after they consumed home-made liquor.