BJP ruled states have highest incidence of hooch deaths: Tejashwi
Tejashwi Prasad Yadav said the BJP was only indulging in dramatics by disrupting the question hour when they had all the opportunity to ask questions from the government on people’s issues.
Patna: Deputy chief minister Tejashwi Prasad Yadav on Thursday slammed Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) legislators for disrupting the house proceedings in the ongoing winter session over the hooch deaths, calling it a big drama’ and asserted that the BJP-ruled states have had the highest incidence of deaths from consumption of spurious liquor in last few years as compared to Bihar.
Yadav, while interacting with the media, said the BJP was only indulging in dramatics by disrupting the question hour when they had all the opportunity to ask questions from the government on people’s issues.
The deputy CM maintained the BJP, now in Opposition, was making a hue and cry over the Saran hooch deaths whereas when they were in power in the National Democratic (NDA) government, there were no such protests over suspected hooch deaths that took place in the last few years. He further claimed that the BJP preferred to stay mum when they were several deaths from suspected consumption of illicit liquor in Gopalganj a year back.
“The BJP should explain whether there have been hooch deaths in the past or not. Four months back, where were they? Even when there were deaths from spurious liquor in Gopalganj , why were they mum,” Yadav asked.
In the same vein, Yadav said the BJP members believe in only spreading misinformation and do not get facts checked while asserting that a reply by the minister of state for home affairs Nityanand Rai in Parliament on July 19 had stated that states like Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, and even Gujarat had witnessed high incidence of hooch deaths from 2016 to 2020, and Bihar had a low incidence of deaths.
The deputy CM said BJP-ruled states had witnessed high incidence of hooch deaths than Bihar in the past, as per the home ministry data. Yadav said Rai in a statement on a question raised by Danish Ali on the number of hooch deaths had given the statistics year-wise from 2016 to 2020.
“The MoS had made the statement in response to a query from MP Danish Ali who sought to know the number of deaths caused by the consumption of spurious liquor. The minister quoted NCRB data to submit that between 2016 and 2020, Madhya Pradesh accounted for the highest number of 1,214 hooch deaths followed by Karnataka where the number was 909. Both states are ruled by the BJP,” he said. He said Punjab stood at number three in the highest number of hooch deaths.
Quoting the data, Yadav said another BJP-ruled state, Haryana, stood at number four while Gujarat, a dry state from where the Prime Minister and union home minister hails, the number of hooch deaths during the period was 50 while for Bihar it was only 21 from 2016-20.
“The BJP leaders are demanding the resignation of CM over the Saran hooch incident. So, will the BJP demand the resignation of chief ministers of the states like Gujarat, Karnataka, and Madhya Pradesh where their party is in power? They are all scared of the 2024 parliamentary polls and have no issues,” he said.
Defending the chief Minister’s ‘Piyoge toh maroge’ remark, Yadav said that the assertion by the JD(U) strongman implied that a wrong deed has unwarranted consequences.
When asked that voices are being raised for a “review” of the prohibition law in the wake of the spurt in hooch tragedies, Yadav said, “Let all those who hold such a view raise the matter inside the House. A legislative matter cannot be debated on the streets”.
