At least four persons were killed and two were battling for their lives in suspected hooch-linked incidents in Patna and Muzaffarpur.
The family members of the victims asserted that the deaths occurred after they allegedly consumed liquor, but the Bihar Police refused to accept it on the pretext that they would wait for the post-mortem report.
Bihar is a dry state since April 2016 and deaths due to illicit liquor in its state capital raise yet another question mark on the dubious decision by chief minister Nitish Kumar’s government to impose prohibition.
The Patna incident occurred at Biscomaun Colony under the Alamganj police station area on Tuesday night. The victims have been identified as Vivek Kumar Sharma, 26, and Akhilesh Kumar, 28, while Abhishek Kumar, 26 is being treated at a private hospital. They were friends and used to hang out together.
The police reached the colony after getting information about the deaths and sent the two dead bodies for post-mortem.
“Two persons have died. Their family members are saying that they had consumed liquor. We have sent their bodies to the Nalanda Medical College and Hospital for post-mortem and would wait for the report before saying anything. The post-mortem reports will make it clear whether they died due to hooch or due to some other reasons,” Alamganj station house officer (SHO) Abhijeet Kumar said.
The Muzaffarpur incident occurred at Baniya Tola under the Deoria police station area on Tuesday. Two persons identified as Indrajit Kumar and Daya Shah. Both were in their twenties. One of their associates is undergoing treatment at a hospital.
The family members of the deceased claimed that they had consumed liquor at a function and suffered from dizziness and vomiting. However, the police did not accept it.
“Two people have died while one is in hospital in this incident. We have taken his statement and are investigating the matter to find out the cause of death,” Muzaffarpur senior superintendent of police (SSP) Jayantkant told media persons.
Over 225 people have lost their lives in hooch tragedies in Bihar since January 2021. The toll stands at 115 during this calendar year.
