Bihar is under 'police raj', families are hiding bodies: Sushil Modi

New Delhi, Dec 16: Former Deputy Chief Minister and BJP MP Sushil Modi lashed out at Nitish Kumar-led Bihar government over the hooch tragedy in Chapra, and said the state was under 'police raj' and the number of deaths in the recent hooch tragedy was much higher.

While speaking to IANS, he said, "More than 100 people died after drinking spurious, illicit liquor. But, the numbers are being hidden. Even in Bihar, the media has put the death toll at around 50. The people are hiding the bodies of their kins fearing police inquiry. There is police raj in Bihar. This is not the first tragedy in Bihar. Before this tragedy, 17 deaths had occurred earlier due to illicit liquor in the same district".

"It is not like Chief Minister Nitish Kumar is not intending, but his will to control the situation is dead. He is making statements like 'jo piyega woh marega' out of frustration in the Assembly. This shouldn't be the language of a Chief Minister," he said.

He further said, "Nitish compares Bihar state with Gujarat... there is proper implementation, but the Nitish government has failed to implement it in Bihar, which is leading to such incidents. Ban onliquor led to loss of around Rs 1,000 crore to the excise department, but it has become a big source of money for the police in Bihar."

The death toll in the Chhapra hooch tragedy, due to the consumption of spurious liquor, in Bihar's Saran district has soared to 50 on Friday (December 16). The Station House Officer (SHO) Ritesh Mishra and Constable Vikesh Tiwari were suspended on Thursday with immediate effect on the recommendation of Marhaura Sub-Divisional Police Officer, Yogendra Kumar.

The sale and consumption of alcohol were banned in Bihar by the Nitish Kumar government in April 2016.