Bihar Hooch Tragedy: Death Toll In Chapra Rises To 50, SIT Constituted For Probe — Top Points

The death toll in the Chhapra Hooch tragedy in Bihar rose to 50 on Friday. The Nitish Kumar government banned the sale and consumption of alcohol in Bihar in April 2016.

Family members and relatives of people, who died after consuming allegedly spurious liquor mourn near their mortal remains, at Ishuapur police station area in Bihar's Saran district, Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2022.

Source : PTI

New Delhi: The death toll in the Chhapra Hooch tragedy in Bihar rose to 50 on Friday, as reported by the news agency ANI. The Nitish Kumar government banned the sale and consumption of alcohol in Bihar in April 2016.

Here Are The Top Points: 

• The death toll in the Chhapra Hooch tragedy in Bihar rose to 50 on Friday.
• Officials said that a special investigation team has been set up to crack the hooch case in the Saran district of Bihar, where 26 people have died and at least 12 others have taken ill since Tuesday night, news agency PTI reported.
  
  
• The district headquarters, Saran District Magistrate Rajesh Meena during a press conference in Chhapra, on Thursday, said that action has been taken against officials concerned. "We have also conducted intensive raids across the district in the last 48 hours and nabbed 126 hooch traders. More than 4,000 litres of illicit liquor have also been seized," he said, as quoted by PTI
  
  
• Superintendent of Police Santosh Kumar declined to divulge whether the arrested persons included those directly involved in the latest hooch case, saying that "the matter is still under investigation and disclosing much at this stage could hamper the probe".
  
  
• Transfer of the Sub Divisional Police Officer of Marhaura has been recommended to authorities along with a request that departmental proceedings be initiated against him. "For speedy investigation, an SIT consisting of 31 police officials, headed by an additional SP and including three deputy SPs, has also been set up", the district magistrate said, as quoted by PTI.
  
  
• The DM and the SP also appealed to the people to come forward "with any relevant information they might have, without any fear of reprisal".           

• Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Wednesday lost his cool in the state assembly when leaders of the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party attacked his government over several deaths due to spurious liquor in Saran district's Chhapra area.

• The Janata Dal-United chief slammed the BJP for protesting the deaths as Leader of Opposition Vijay Kumar Sinha questioned the state's liquor ban policy since 2016. Nitish Kumar lost his temper in the House and screamed at the BJP MLAs ''Sharabi ho gaye ho tum...(you are drunk)".

• Protesting against the incident, Bihar opposition lawmakers also staged a demonstration outside the state assembly later.

(With agencies' Inputs)