Four killed in hooch tragedy in ‘dry state’ Bihar, more than 350 lives lost in one decade of ‘liquor prohibition’

Four people have died, and at least six others are undergoing treatment at a government hospital in Bihar's East Champaran district after consuming spurious liquor. The latest hooch tragedy took place at Turkauliya and Raghunathpur areas of Motihari on Thursday.

At least seven others, who had also sought treatment after consuming the adulterated liquor, have been discharged from the hospital.

Four killed after consuming spurious liquor

“The death toll has now mounted to four. Bodies have been sent for post-mortem examination. The exact cause of death can only be known after the report," East Champaran District Magistrate Saurabh Jorwal said.

A total of 12 people, including a village chowkidar, have been arrested in connection with the incident, while the SHO of Turkauliya police station has been suspended with immediate effect.

SIT probe underway

SP Swarn Prabhat said a Special Investigation Team (SIT) has been constituted to probe the incident.

A murder case has been registered based on a complaint filed by the family members of the deceased, police said.

"Police have identified the liquor supplier, and he will soon be nabbed. A team of the district police and the Anti-Liquor Task Force (ALTF) are conducting searches in Parsauni, Mushhari Tola and Turkaulia. A high-level inquiry has also been ordered into the incident," Prabhat had said on Thursday.

Hooch tragedy in Saran

This is the second hooch tragedy in Bihar in less than a month. In the second week of March, at least five people had lost their lives after consuming spurious liquor in Saran district.

In February, at least five people had died after consuming suspected poisonous liquor in Bihar’s Rohtas district.

Nitish Kumar's liquor prohibition

In fact, Bihar has seen a spike in deaths from the consumption of adulterated country-made liquor in the past one decade. The Nitish Kumar-led Bihar government imposed a total ban on the sale and consumption of alcohol in the state on April 5, 2016.

While the liquor ban, which was a poll promise Kumar made to women voters in Bihar, to reduce domestic violence, it only resulted in legal, ‘safe’ alcohol becoming unavailable.

Despite the government’s promises to crack down on illegal brewing and sales, it continued unabated throughout Bihar, with consumption and sales peaking during festivals.

In 2025 alone, authorities seized over 36 lakh litres of illicit liquor across the state.

350 lives lost since 2016

In March, ADG Amit Kumar Jain said a total of 354 people have died due to the consumption of spurious liquor in Bihar since the prohibition law was implemented in 2016.

While these are the official figures, critics point out that the real toll is much higher, as many cases are written off as health-related deaths, and many more incidents involving fewer victims are seldom reported to the authorities.

Calls to end liquor prohibition in Bihar

Despite the rising cases of hooch tragedies, Kumar has repeatedly turned down calls to revoke the liquor prohibition. Those who have spoken up against the ban include former Bihar Chief Minister Lalu Prasad and his son Tejashwi Yadav, who called prohibition a "super flop" that exists only on paper.

Even some of his current NDA allies have openly called for the liquor ban to be revoked.

In February, Union minister Jitan Ram Manjhi said the principle of prohibition was not flawed, but its implementation had gone awry.

“We have been saying for a long time that the liquor policy is not wrong, and prohibition should be implemented. However, there are flaws in its implementation,” he said.

With Kumar set to resign as Bihar Chief Minister in the coming days, it would be interesting to see what the next government’s policy on the liquor ban is.