Kallakurichi (Tamil Nadu), 22 June

The death toll in the Kallakurichi hooch tragedy rose to 53 on Saturday and the administration said the condition of 140 people was currently safe.

About 140 people out of 193 who were admitted to various government medical facilities after they consumed the spurious liquor on Tuesday night were currently safe, Kallakurichi district collector M S Prasanth said.

"So far 53 people have passed away. Seven people have been arrested in connection with the spurious liquor tragedy," he told reporters after visiting the victims at the Kallakurich government hospital.

BJP on Saturday demanded the immediate resignation of Tamil Nadu Prohibition and Excise Minister S Muthusamy over a recent hooch tragedy in the state and accused the ruling DMK of shielding the culprits.

The saffron party also demanded a probe into the incident by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

Several people died after consuming spurious liquor in Tamil Nadu's Kallakurichi while many are undergoing treatment at local hospitals.

Addressing a press conference here, Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla described the deaths as "state-sponsored murder" and held the ruling DMK in the southern state "solely responsible" for the tragedy.

"So far, 53 individuals have died and a majority of them belonged to the Scheduled Castes. Instead of taking action on this state-sponsored murder, the DMK continues to shield the villains of this ghastly crime," Poonawalla said.