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CM vows action, says will review after Chhath
PATNA Under fire for hooch deaths, Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar Friday warned of strict action against those involved in sale or consumption of liquor and said he would review the situation after the festival of Chhath
PATNA
Under fire for hooch deaths, Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar Friday warned of strict action against those involved in sale or consumption of liquor and said he would review the situation after the festival of Chhath.
“It is for people to see and judge. If you indulge in such activities, the result is before you. We will take action. Some people are doing bad work by making spurious liquor. Raids are on and I am going to review the entire scenario once the Chhath festival is over,” Kumar said.
Minister for excise and prohibition, Sunil Kumar, acknowledged 21 deaths occurred due consumption of spurious liquor. “We are not trying to hide anything. Whatever the truth, it is presented before the media,” he said.
The minister said the state government is enforcing prohibition laws with all seriousness and more than 700 employees of excise department have been suspended for laxity in enforcing the law.
The Opposition, meanwhile, alleged a nexus between the liquor mafia and officials. Leader of opposition in state assembly, RJD’s Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, said liquor smugglers were calling the shots in Bihar government. “More than 50 deaths have occurred due to spurious liquor in the last three days only under the rule of those who harp on prohibition. Instead of acting tough on mafias, smugglers and erring officials, CM is himself threatening to teach a hard lesson to drinkers,” said Yadav.
Congress spokesperson Asit Nath Tiwary demanded immediate expulsion of the excise minister
However, former CM Jitan Ram Manjhi’s HAM (S), which is a constituent of the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA), saw a conspiracy hatched by opposition parties in the wake of their defeat in recently concluded assemvly by-elections. HAM(S) spokesperson Danish Rizwan said, “The opposition is unnerved by their defeat in bypolls and is bent upon maligning the reputation of the government. We are also identifying the officials who are involved in such nefarious designs of opposition.”
