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The ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) allies successful Bihar person urged Chief Minister Nitish Kumar to reappraisal the State’s prohibition policy, successful unit since April 2016, and flagged fiscal losses to the State exchequer from commercialized successful illicit liquor. The Janata Dal-United (JD-U) leaders, however, person said the argumentation was being reviewed from clip to time, and has had a bully interaction connected society.
Rashtriya Lok Morcha (RLM) person and MLA from Madhubani Madhav Anand archetypal raised the contented of a reappraisal successful the State Assembly connected Tuesday (February 17, 2026), drafting attraction to “financial losses”.
Led by erstwhile Union Minister Upendra Kushwaha, the RLM has 4 MLAs successful the Bihar Assembly. Apart from Mr. Anand, Mr. Kushwaha’s wife, Snehlata, is the MLA from Sasaram; Rameshwar Mahto is the MLA from Bajpatti; and Alok Kumar Singh is the MLA from Dinara. Mr. Kushwaha’s lad Deepak Prakash, who is neither an MLA nor MLC, is the Bihar Panchayati Raj Minister.
On Wednesday (February 18, 2026), Hindustani Awam Morcha-Secular (HAM-S) person and Union Minister for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Jitan Ram Manjhi, besides an NDA ally, raised the aforesaid contented portion speaking to media persons successful Gaya.
“We person been saying for a agelong clip that the liquor argumentation is not incorrect but determination are flaws successful its implementation. We convey Chief Minister Nitish Kumar for conducting a 3rd reappraisal of the prohibition argumentation astatine our request. Prohibition is causing important fiscal nonaccomplishment to the Bihar authorities and Nitish Kumar should code this,” Mr. Manjhi said, adding, “The mediocre are suffering nether the liquor laws portion the affluent tin person costly liquor astatine their doorsteps.” The HAM(S) has 5 MLAs successful the Bihar Assembly.
JD(U) spokesperson Abhishek Jha, however, said the prohibition argumentation was doing good successful Bihar, and was being reviewed “from clip to time”.
JD(U) MLA from Islampur successful Nalanda territory Ruhail Ranjan said Mr. Anand’s connection was not that of his enactment but his own, and determination was “no disorder implicit the ongoing prohibition argumentation successful the State, which has its bully interaction connected society”.
Opposition leaders person been demanding a reappraisal of the liquor argumentation for its “faulty implementation”, which they allege has pb to commercialized successful “home delivered” amerciable liquor astatine precocious rates successful the State. Hundreds of mostly mediocre radical person died successful antithetic parts of Bihar successful hooch tragedies since the argumentation came into effect.
The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and its person Tejashwi Yadav, who is besides the Leader of the Opposition successful the State Assembly, portion criticising the government’s prohibition policy, had earlier alleged that “prohibition has wholly failed successful Bihar”.
Leaders of the Congress party, too, person raised doubts implicit the “implementation” of the prohibition argumentation successful the past decade. Mr. Kumar, however, maintains “piyoge to maroge (if you drink, you volition die)” arsenic his dictum, and holds to the presumption that his “government volition proceed with prohibition, travel what may”.
Illicit liquor has been recovered funnelled into the State successful coffins, railway pantry cars, bicycle tubes, ambulances, boats, LPG cylinders, watermelons, and truthful on, chiefly from West Bengal, Jharkhand, Punjab, and Haryana, and adjacent Nepal. Hundreds of constabulary unit and Prohibition Department employees person been caught engaged successful the amerciable commercialized of liquor, and suspended oregon dismissed from service. Several lakh litres of amerciable liquor person been seized, and thousands arrested for the usurpation of the liquor laws, which person continued contempt much than 80 checkpoints, and the usage of scanners and different gadgets to support Bihar a adust State.
