Tejashwi terms liquor ban in state ‘a hoax’

■ Empty liquor bottles in Bihar Assembly premises sparks row

Leader of the opposition Tejashwi Yadav slammed the state government and Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar over the recovery of empty liquor bottles from the Bihar assembly premises.

Mr Yadav who has been critical of the state government’s liquor prohibition policy also demanded his resignation over the issue.

“There is liquor everywhere inside the assembly campus. This has gone too far now. chief minister Nitish Kumar who also holds the home minister’s portfolio has no moral right to remain in the power even for a second”, Leader of the opposition in Bihar Assembly Tejashwi Yadav said while raising the issue inside the house on Tuesday.

The incident occurred just a day after NDA legislators took a pledge to support Nitish Kumar’s liquor ban policy in Bihar.

Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar has been facing sharp criticism from the political parties after reports of illegal liquor trafficking surfaced. In November more than 39 people had died due to the consumption of spurious liquor in the Gopalganj and West Champaran districts.

After the bottles were recovered Tejashwi Yadav and his party RJD termed the liquor ban in the state “a hoax” and said that the policy only existed in files. They said that the administration has been targeting only the weak and poor while powerful people have easy access to liquor through home delivery.

“They should find out and how and from where liquor bottles were brought inside the campus that too during winter session and just a few steps from CM’s chamber”, Tejashwi Yadav said.