A look at Bihar’s history of prohibition, as Nitish Kumar calls alcohol drinkers ‘mahapapi’

Those who drink are “mahapaapi” and “not Hindustani”, Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar said while participating in a debate on the proposed amendments to the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act, 2016. “He doesn’t listen to the teachings of Gandhi. He is not a Hindustani, an Indian. He is not competent. He is a mahapaapi,” Kumar said. The remarks came as Bihar Assembly introduced and passed an amendment bill that seeks to make the liquor ban less stringent for first-time offenders in the state.

Bihar CM Nitish Kumar while speaking in the Bihar Legislative Council called those who consume alcohol "Mahapaapi" (sinners) and said anyone who doesn't abide by the ideals of Bapu is not even an Indian. Watch here.#NewsMo #ITVertical #Bihar #CM #NitishKumar pic.twitter.com/Luoisn6CRs

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What is the prohibition bill? How has it affected Bihar? We take a look at the state’s chequered history with alcohol. Hooch drinking continues to plague Bihar, which is one of the poorest states in the country. Alcohol prohibition has been one of the highlights of Kumar’s policies in the state. The CM and Janata Dal (United) chief also said on Wednesday that families of those who die because of drinking spurious liquor will not get any relief from the state government. “We would not give any compensation to such families. Liquor traders would face stringent action post amendments in the Act,” Kumar clarified. The amendments to the 2016 bill come in the wake of continuing hooch-related deaths in Bihar. In over half a dozen incidents, 60 people have died over the last six months. In December last year, Kumar embarked on a “Samaj Sudhar” yatra to create awareness about alcoholism, among other things. The two hooch tragedies in Gopalganj and West Champaran in November 2021 brought the focus back on the prohibition law enforced since 2016. With the media and opposition slamming the CM for poor implementation of the law, he undertook the social reform tour, hoping to do some damage control. “It was Gopalganj that the first liquor conviction came when nine people were sentenced to death and five people were given life sentence recently in 2016 hooch case (in which 18 people had died). One should take a lesson from it,” Kumar had said during the December yatra. The 2016 liquor law The Bihar Assembly unanimously passed the Bihar Excise (Amendment) Bill 2016 to enforce a ban on country-made liquor from April 1 that year. First introduced in 1915, it was amended to incorporate stricter penal provisions, including a death sentence for manufacturers and distributors of illicit liquor. In Phase 1 of the prohibition, all shops selling country liquor in rural areas were shut down. Phase 2, where alcohol is completely banned in the state, was to be introduced in six months. But after women in the state welcomed the decision, the second phase was implemented before the scheduled time. The state went completely dry, making the sale of alcohol illegal. After the first phase of restrictions, women and social activists protested demanding a complete ban because of alcohol addiction among men. The Nitish Kumar-led government caved in to their demands. Kumar had said in 2016 that alcohol addiction led to family problems including domestic violence and also affected the children’s education. “Women are suffering more than anyone else due to increasing liquor consumption,” he had said. Bihar’s chequered history with alcohol 2016 was not Bihar’s first attempt at a complete alcohol ban. In March 1979, during the tenure of Karpoori Thakur, the state’s two-time chief minister and veteran socialist leader, prohibition was announced. The ban, however, was lifted by successor Ram Sundar Das in the wake of increased corruption and bootlegging. In 2016, Nitish Kumar decided to fulfil his poll promise and brought in the liquor law. Other dry states Bihar became the fourth state to go dry after Gujarat, Nagaland, and Mizoram. Gujarat has been a dry state for six decades now since its inception. Mizoram was a dry state for close to 18 years until the Congress government lifted the ban on alcohol in January 2015. In March 2019, the state unanimously passed The Mizoram Liquor (Prohibition) Bill, 2019 to replace the four-year-old Mizoram Liquor (Prohibition and Control) or MLPC Act, 2014. India’s failed tryst with prohibition Bihar’s prohibition law is well-intended but finds itself on the wrong side of history. Article 47 of the Constitution obliges the government to prohibit the consumption of alcohol and legal challenges to it have not been successful, reports Scroll.in. The many attempts in the country to ban liquor have failed. In 1950, Morarji Desai decided to enforce prohibition, but the Bombay Prohibition Act, 1949, was challenged in court by FN Balsara. In 1951, the Supreme Court held that several provisions of the Act were unconstitutional and allowed alcohol to be used for medicinal purposes and in cleaning agents. The Act was amended regularly, and in September 1972, the Maharashtra government amended the Bombay Foreign Liquor Rules, 1953, adding a chapter that allows people to obtain permits to consume alcohol. This law still exists. In 1978, Punjab declared Tuesday and Friday to be dry days, which was challenged later that year in the Supreme Court. The top court rejected the competence of the legislature and the reasonableness of the restrictions, according to the Scroll report. The Haryana Vikas Party also enforced strict prohibition in 1996, only to roll it back after the general election two years later. How successful has Bihar’s law been It’s been six years since the 2016 law came into force. However, illicit liquor and hooch deaths raise questions about the effectiveness of the law. Alcohol continues to be easily available in the state where bootlegging is rampant. Over 3.46 lakh people have been arrested, 186 police and other officials dismissed, 60 tainted Station House Officers banned from postings, and 97 lakh litres of IMFL and 53 lakh litres of country-made liquor seized in Bihar from April 2016 to February 2021, reports The Hindu. In the past, Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad has demanded the scrapping of the liquor law, saying the state had been suffering a loss of about Rs 6,000 crore that excise tax on liquor could have brought. With inputs from agencies Read all the Latest News , Trending News ,  Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.