Four employees of the Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (Tasmac) retail outlet on South East Rampart Road in Thanjavur were suspended on Monday, May 22, 2023, in the wake of two persons dying after consuming ‘cyanide-laced’ liquor on Sunday. Meanwhile, Senthil, the bar owner, and Kamaraj, the bartender, were arrested in connection with the case.
According to official sources, the retail outlet is located near the bar where the victims Kuppusamy, 68, and Vivek, 36, of Thanjavur, bought and consumed the liquor that had been reportedly ‘laced with cyanide’ on Sunday. Investigations by the Thanjavur East police revealed that the employees of the Tasmac outlet had supplied the liquor bottles to the bar management two to three hours before the shop opened for business on the day.
Though the Tasmac officials divulged the names of the suspended employees as Muruganandam, manager, and Thirunavukkarasu, Sathyaseelan and Balu, all three worked as salesmen, they refused to respond when asked how the product got ‘laced with cyanide’, stating that the matter was still being investigated by the police.
A police officer involved in the investigation said they were pursuing multiple leads and would crack the case soon.
Solatium demanded
Meanwhile, relatives of the two victims refused to accept their bodies demanding solatium and government jobs for a member from each of the two families.
BJP state general secretary Karuppu Muruganandam on Monday urged the government to extend ₹1 crore each to the bereaved families since the deceased had consumed the liquor sold under the Tasmac label. He pointed out that a solatium of ₹10 lakh each had been given to the victims’ families in the recent spurious liquor incidents in Villupuram and Chengalpattu.
Earlier, Mr. Muruganandam visited the kin of the victims at the Thanjavur Medical College and Hospital and condoled the deaths. Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi Thanjavur district president Chokkaravi also visited the hospital and spoke with the families of the victims.
