PatnaChief Minister Nitish Kumar, who is facing criticism over repeated incidents of spurious liquor in Bihar, on Thursday called the drinkers ‘mahapapi’ and said that the state government is not responsible for giving relief to those who died due to consumption of spurious liquor. can be held.
The Chief Minister said that Mahatma Gandhi had also opposed the consumption of liquor and those who go against his principles are “great sinners and highly unworthy”. Kumar said, ‘I do not consider these people to be Indians.’
He said that people consume alcohol knowing that the consumption of alcohol is harmful and thus, they are responsible for its consequences, not the state government.
He said, ‘It is their fault. They also consume alcohol knowing that it can be poisonous. Kumar made the remarks after the Bihar Assembly yesterday introduced and passed an amendment bill that seeks to make the liquor ban less stringent for first-time drinkers in the state. Nitish was responding to the opposition’s allegations that the liquor tragedy continues in Bihar as the state government has failed to implement the liquor ban effectively.
After the Governor’s assent to the Bihar Prohibition and Excise (Amendment) Bill, 2022, first-time offenders will get bail from the duty magistrate after depositing the fine. However, if the person fails to pay it, he may face a jail term of one month.
The chief minister has come under attack from both coalition ally BJP and opposition RJD after liquor tragedies in the state, which claimed over 60 lives in the last six months of 2021.
The opposition has said the ban on liquor remained only on paper, while the BJP alleged that the authorities were not strictly implementing the prohibition law and using it to extort money from people.
The Supreme Court had also remarked last year that the liquor law was affecting the functioning of the judiciary in Bihar, with 14-15 judges of the Patna High Court hearing only bail petitions related to arrests made under the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act. are.
first published:March 31, 2022, 5:03 pm