Tejashwi Yadav Slams Nitish Kumar: ‘Ban a Super Flop’ After 33 Liquor Deaths in Bihar | India News – Times of India

After 33 people lost their lives due to the consumption of spurious liquor in Bihar, former deputy chief minister Tejashwi Yadav launched a scathing attack on chief minister Nitish Kumar. Taking to X (formerly Twitter) on Friday, Yadav blamed Nitish Kumar‘s policies for the failure of the liquor ban in the state, calling it a prime example of “institutional corruption.”
In his post, Yadav wrote, “Liquor ban is a small example of Nitish Kumar’s institutional corruption.If a liquor ban has been implemented, it is the government’s responsibility to enforce it completely. But due to the ideological and policy ambiguity of the chief minister, weak will, and dependence on selected officials instead of public representatives, the liquor ban is a super flop in Bihar today.”
He further alleged that a “black market of illegal liquor worth more than 30,000 crores” had flourished in Bihar due to an “unholy nexus of ruling politicians, police, and the liquor mafia.” Yadav added, “Despite prohibition, 3.46 crore litres of liquor are shown to have been recovered on paper in Bihar. According to an honest senior police officer, there is fraud in this as well, as the police pretend to seize liquor when a truck smuggles alcohol into the state.”
Yadav also posed direct questions to Nitish Kumar, asking who was responsible for such large quantities of alcohol being seized annually and why most of those arrested in connection with liquor-related offenses were from the poor and marginalized communities.
As the political blame game continues, the toll from the two recent incidents of illicit liquor consumption has risen to 33, with 28 deaths reported in Siwan and 5 in Saran. Authorities have admitted 79 people to Siwan Sadar Hospital and Basantpur Primary Health Center. Among them, 13 critically ill patients have been transferred to PMCH Patna for advanced treatment.