The 62-year-old had complained against a man who was allegedly in the illegal liquor trade; the man’s family attacked him with choppers and set fire to the shop where he was standing
Even after the Malwani hooch tragedy in June, in which over 100 people were killed, the hooch mafia has not been rooted out; it’s just waiting for a chance to strike again. A 62-year-old Shiv Sena worker, who had complained against the hooch business in Ulhasnagar, survived a deadly attempt on his life around 10 pm on Tuesday.
One of the accused, Yogesh Shinde, has been arrested by the police
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According to the police, Shashikant Kulal survived the attack by the family of the hooch maker, who attacked him with swords. Kulal, a grocer by profession, was in his friend’s shop in Ulhasnagar’s Hanuman Tekdi area when he was attacked by Yogesh, Santosh, Dinesh Akash and Maya — all members of the Shinde family.
Cops said that Kulal had complained against Yogesh Shinde’s illegal hooch business in the Hanuman Tekdi area. “The accused came with swords and chopped off Kulal’s finger. They also set on fire the shop of one Ram Gupta, where Kulal was sitting.
Gupta also suffered burn injuries. Kulal’s son Santosh, who interfered, was also injured,” said Kishore Jadhav, senior police inspector of Ulhasnagar police station. The cops said that the accused had brought petrol, swords and choppers along with them.
Yogesh and his wife, Maya, have been arrested while the other three are absconding. “The accused attacked the victim as he had complained about his business to us and we had acted on it. We are now checking if Shinde was still operating the hooch business,” added Jadhav.
After the Malwani incident, the government had acted against the cops and state excise department for allowing the illegal liquor business to operate in the city. “Though the government is serious, the cops don’t seem to be serious to stop the hooch business as they get huge haftas,” said Dinesh Indulkar, a local activist.
“Our party worker, Kulal, had complained about illegal hooch and that’s why they tried to kill him. After we met senior police officers, the cops arrested Yogesh and Maya. Both accused had tried to kill Kulal,” said Rajendra Chowdhary, Shiv Sena city president for Ambernath and Ulhasnagar.
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