Bihar govt 'committing massacre' through liquor ban: BJP leader

Patna, Dec 15 (IANS) With the toll in the Saran liquor tragedy at 39, Leader of Opposition in Bihar Assembly Vijay Kumar Sinha targeted Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, accusing his government of "committing a massacre".

"Nitish Kumar should take responsibility on moral grounds and resign from his post. If the government recommends the case in such a massacre, the names of a number of officials and leaders will come in it," Sinha said.

"Over three dozen people have lost their lives in a liquor tragedy and if they are unable to prevent such incidents, they have no right to stay in power. After so many deaths, the Chief Minister of Bihar, instead of giving a statement on it, had blamed us. The behaviour of the Assembly Speaker is also not appropriate. The state government is trying to suppress the voice but they would not make us silent," he said.

"More than 1,000 people have lost their lives due to spurious liquor in Bihar. The state government should take responsibility for it and give adequate compensation to them. Preventing such liquor tragedies are the responsibility of the state government. It cannot run away from it," Sinha said.

"The RJD and the JD-U had respectively given tickets to liquor mafia in Gopalganj and Kurhani by-poll. They have strong relationships with liquor and sand mafia. When we raise these issues inside the house, they are trying to suppress us...," Sinha said.