Sagar Hooch tragedy backlash: Angry women vandalize MP liquor store, destroy ₹25,000 worth of stock

An angry women-led mob, enraged over the Sagar Hooch tragedy that claimed 16 lives, ransacked a licensed liquor shop in Madhya Pradesh’s Tikamgarh district and smashed stock worth ₹25,000, an official said on Monday (14 Sep 2026).

Protesters stormed a shop in Bamhori village on Sunday (September 13, 2026) shouting anti-liquor slogans and demanding accountability for the bereaved families.

The incident took place at Bamhori under Jatara division, about 35 km from the district headquarters, District Excise Officer Naresh Pratap Singh told PTI.

The mob targeted a shop run by Maa Gaholi Wines and destroyed a large quantity of Country and Indian Foreign Liquor (IMFL) worth ₹25,000, he said.

Tikamgarh and Sagar are among the districts in the economically backward Bundelkhand region of Madhya Pradesh, which borders Uttar Pradesh.

An excise official alleged that the sarpanch of Bamhori village used the Sagar tragedy to create an atmosphere against the liquor trade and mobilized people in an attempt to strengthen his local political influence.

Police personnel posted to Bamhori beat under Digoda police station said a shopkeeper had lodged a First Information Report (FIR) against unknown persons.

No case has been registered until the time of filing this report.

Police have arrested 19 people, some of them after a brief encounter, in the Sagar Hooch tragedy case. Police say a suspected gang from Lalitpur in neighboring Uttar Pradesh was linked to the production and supply of fake liquor that claimed 16 lives.

Published – 14 Sep 2026 12:35 PM IST