PATNA: Ten more people died after allegedly consuming illicit liquor in Bihar's Siwan and Saran districts, taking the toll in the hooch tragedy to 35, an official said on Friday.
Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Police, Saran range, Nilesh Kumar said on Friday that while Siwan accounted for 28 fatalities, seven deaths have been reported from Saran.
"As many as 28 people in Maghar and Auriya panchayats in Siwan district have so far died after consuming suspected illicit liquor.
Seven people in the Ibrahimpur area under the jurisdiction of Mashrakh police station in Saran district also died after consuming suspected spurious liquor", the DIG told PTI on Friday.
In a related incident, two additional fatalities were reported in Gopalganj district, where Laldeo Manjhi and Babulal Rai from Baikunthpur village succumbed after consuming illicit liquor.
Family members indicated that the victims had consumed the toxic beverage in Masarakh, Saran district. Gopalganj Superintendent of Police Awadhesh Dixit mentioned that the circumstances surrounding their deaths were unclear, stating, "The cause of death will be determined following the postmortem report."
In response to the growing crisis, police have intensified operations against the illicit liquor trade across the three affected districts. In Siwan, two Special Investigation Teams (SITs) have been established to address the activities of local liquor mafias.
Authorities conducted searches at 140 locations in Gopalganj, destroying over 5,000 litres of country-made liquor.
Commenting on the incident, RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, on Friday in a post on X wrote, "Bihar CM Nitish Kumar should be blamed for the latest hooch deaths in the state. It's a mass murder. Liquor ban is an example of Nitish Kumar-led government's institutional corruption. If liquor ban has been implemented then it is the government's responsibility to implement it efficiently but it's not happening."
"The liquor ban is super flop in Bihar today.Due to the unholy nexus between ruling politicians-police and liquor mafia, a black market of illegal liquor, worth more than Rs 30,000 crore has flourished in Bihar," the post further read.
"According to state government records, number of people who died due to consumption of spurious liquor is more than 300. Who is their killer ?"
(With inputs from PTI)