Chalakudy: The Kerala police team probing the mystery behind Kalabhavan Mani's death has now come up with another assumption that the traces of methanol in the late Malayalam actor's body could have been triggered by the excess consumption of beer.
The probe team has found that Mani had consumed as many as 15 bottles of beer on a single day, when he got seriously ill and was admitted to a hospital in Kochi on March 5. He passed away on March 6.
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The various medical reports had earlier pointed out that methanol along with insecticide could have led to his death. The probe so far has been based on the assumption that the toxic methanol could have entered Mani's body through spurious arrack.
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The presence of methanol has been ascertained in all the hooch tragedies that have rocked Kerala until now. That is the reason why police started searching for the sources of illicit liquor when the presence of methanol in Mani's body was revealed. Although some people were detained in connection with the development, Mani's friends and close aides swore that Mani had not consumed anything else other than beer that day.
However, the case turned murkier with the detection of insecticide in Mani's body. The investigation team thereafter sought the measure of each toxic substances in his body from central laboratory in Hyderabad. The latest assumption was arrived at the meeting convened to form a medical board.
15 bottles of beer on a single day
Methanol could be present in beer as well. But it might be too limited to be identifiable in a healthy body. However, the probe team found that Mani had consumed as many as 15 bottles of beer on a single day. Though beer is comparatively less vigorous, considering the amount of beer Mani had drunk and thereby the methanol that collectively entered his body could have turned fatal, as the actor was already afflicted by liver ailment.
If this assumption is confirmed, the next challenge before the police is to find the source of the insecticide. If that too is proved to be negligible in the Hyderabad test, it will lead to the conclusion that the insecticide residues must have reached his body through food and other sources. This will further take the investigation to its final stage ruling out anything suspicious in Mani's death.