HOOCH TRAJEDY DEATH TOLLS REACHES 39

The district administration has confirmed six deaths due to a u201csuspected hooch tragedyu201d in villages under the Masrakh, Marhaura, Amnour and Ishuapur Blocks of Chhapra, district headquarter of Saran district, in dry Bihar.u201cThree people have been taken into custody,u201d Prohibition, Excise and Registration Minister Sunil Kumar said.
Family members told local mediapersons that the victims had gone to the Doyila village market under the Ishuapur block in Chhapra on Monday and consumed liquor on Monday night. u201cTheir condition deteriorated on December 13 and five of them died the same night while others lost their lives on December 14 morning,u201d a family member of the deceased Ramesh Ram told local media persons.
Irate family members of the deceased blocked the State Highway near Hanuman chowk in Chhapra and disrupted the movement of traffic. They burnt tyres and shouted slogans against the district administration, demanding compensation for the kin of those who had died in the hooch tragedy. They also demanded action against those involved in the incident.
u201cThe death toll will increase by tomorrow [Thursday] as several critically people are undergoing treatment in private hospitals secretively for fear of the police,u201d the protesting villagers said. Reports suggested several of the deceased had lost their eyesight, others were struggling for life in different hospitals of the district. Among them, four persons have been referred to the Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH) for treatment.
Chief Minister Nitish Kumar blamed Opposition BJP legislators when they raised the issue in the Assembly. Bihar has been a dry State since April 2016 under stringent laws.
When Opposition BJP legislators raised the issue of the hooch deaths in the Bihar Assembly on Wednesday, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar lost his cool. u201cArre, tum bol rahe hou2026chup raho. Sarabi ho gaye ho tumu2026tum log karwa rahe ho sabu2026kitna ganda kaam kar rahe hou2026sabko baahar nikalo…yeh bardast nahi hoga (Oh, you are speaking? Keep quiet. You [BJP legislators] have gone drunku2026you have been doing all this [hooch tragedies]u2026what dirty work youu2019ve been doingu2026get all of them outu2026this will not be tolerated),u201d Mr. Kumar shouted.
BJP members later created a ruckus inside the House and subsequently staged a walk out. They demonstrated outside the House, demanding Mr. Kumaru2019s u201capologyu201d for his u201cundemocratic behaviouru201d.
u201cUntil Chief Minister Nitish Kumar apologises for his undemocratic behaviour, we will not allow the State Assembly to run smoothlyu2026the way Mr. Kumar used unparliamentary language against BJP members on the floor of the House is not acceptable. The BJP has decided to boycott the House,u201d senior BJP leader and Leader of Party in the House, Vijay Kumar Sinha, said.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar responds to Opposition remarks on the Chhapra hooch tragedy in the Assembly in Patna on December 14, 2022. 
The BJPu2019s Leader of the party in the State Council, Samrat Choudhury, held Mr. Kumar responsible for the hooch deaths. Other protesting BJP legislators blamed the u201cnexus between police and illicit liquor tradersu201d for the deaths. u201cIu2019ll even appeal to the family members of those who died in the hooch tragedy to file FIR (First Information Report) against Nitish Kumar,u201d Mr. Choudhary said.
However, ruling party legislator and Finance minister Vijay Kumar Choudhury said there was u201cno question of Mr. Kumar apologising as he has said nothing undemocraticu201d. u201cWeu2019ve liquor prohibition law in Bihar but still people are drinking liquor and dying, which proves that it is not right to drink and die,u201d Mr. Choudhary said, adding, u201cOpposition members often claim that liquor is available everywhere in the State but when we ask them to provide details of the sellers, they turn silent.u201d
The dead villagers have been identified as Vijendra Rai (46), Ramji Sah (55), Amit Ranjan (38),Sanjay Singh (45), Kunal Singh (38), Jaideo Singh (43), Mukesh Sharma (30), Naseer Hussain (42), Ramesh Ram (42), Chandrama Ram (48), Lallan Ram (55), Vikki Mahto (16), Harendra Ram, Ajay Giri, Bharat Ram, Manoj Ram, Mangal Rai, Govind Rai, Premchand Sah and Dinesh Thakur.
u201cWe have detained three persons in connection with the incident and raids are being conducted to nab others involved in the illegal liquor business,u201d Superintendent of Police-Saran, Santosh Kumar, said.
Speaking to local mediapersons, District Magistrate Rajesh Meena said: u201cI have got reports of about six deaths and the investigation is on. We have also talked to the villagers and urged them to report fearlessly about illegal liquor trade in the area.u201d
The official record shows that about 170 people lost their lives in Bihar due to consumption of spurious liquor from January to November this year. Over 3.5 lakh people have been arrested and over seven lakh litres of illegal liquor seized after the State government implemented the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act, 2016.Who is responsible for the Incident?  Comment Below.