Bihar prohibition minister visits Motihari 4 days after hooch tragedy

Patna: Four days after the hooch tragedy in Bihar’s Motihari, which has so far claimed 31 lives, came to light, Bihar Prohibition, Excise and Registration Minister Sunil Kumar visited the district on Wednesday.

Kumar directed officials accompanying him to intensify searches in the district to nab the people involved in the business of spurious liquor.

He also asked them to ensure smooth disbursal of the ex-gratia amount to the affected families.

Making a U-turn on paying compensation to the victims of hooch tragedies in dry Bihar, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Monday announced conditional payment of an ex gratia of Rs 4 lakh each to the next of kin of those who died after drinking spurious liquor since 2016.

The amount will only be given if their family members say in writing to the district magistrate concerned that the death took place after consuming illicit liquor. They will have to disclose the source from where the alcohol was procured, too, the chief minister had said.

The hooch tragedy took place on the intervening night of Friday and Saturday in Turkauliya, Harsiddhi, Sugauli and Paharpur villages of Motihari.

Meanwhile, reacting to the BJP's claim that Nitish Kumar bowed to the demand of opposition and announced the ex-gratia, senior JD (U) leader and Finance Minister Vijay Kumar Choudhary alleged that the saffron party “manufactures lies”.

“Let me make it very clear that the Mahgathbandhan government has decided to provide conditional financial help to the family members of those who died after consuming spurious liquor. They will have to give an undertaking and they will also have to encourage others to follow prohibition law in the state,” he said.

The prohibition law stands 'undiluted' and strict action will be taken against those who violate it, he added.

On BJP's demand for withdrawal of 3.61 lakh FIRs pertaining to violation of the prohibition law, the finance minister, a close confidante of the chief minister, said, “The matter is pending before different courts in the state. The law will take its own course”.