A man wanted in connection with the hooch tragedy in Madhya Pradesh's Sagar district that recently claimed 16 lives was captured after a brief encounter with police early on Sunday (September 13, 2026), officials said.

VIDEO | Madhya Pradesh hooch tragedy: Wanted accused apprehended after brief encounter with police in Sagar district.



(Full video available on PTI Videos – https://t.co/d8jp61yd2p) pic.twitter.com/o8oJoCdEIW

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) September 13, 2026

The 21-year-old accused, Shivanjay Rajput, who was carrying a bounty of ₹30,000, suffered a gunshot wound to his leg during the face-off, they said.

With this, the number of accused arrested in the case of spurious liquor consumption has gone up to 19, police sources said.

Mr. Rajput allegedly fired three rounds at a police team during a search operation near Kathua Nala forest area under Bahrol police station, following which the security personnel fired two rounds in retaliation and hit him in the leg, the officials said.

The accused was subsequently arrested and taken to a hospital for treatment. His condition was stable, Sagar police control room in-charge sub-inspector RKS Chauhan told PTI over the phone.

Mr. Rajput, a resident of Chhapri village under Banda police station in Sagar, had been absconding since the spurious liquor incident earlier this month killed 16 persons. He was involved in brewing the liquor, and a reward of ₹30,000 was offered for information leading to his arrest, according to police.

A country-made .315-bore pistol, three live cartridges, three empty cartridges, a mobile phone and a motorcycle were recovered from his possession, a police statement said.