Free-for-all liquor loot

Patna: The idiom “when it rains, it pours” took on a whole new meaning in a town in Aurangabad district on Friday when residents fled with pouches filled with liquor.

The tragicomic – tragic because it exposes the failure of the liquor ban and comic because of obvious reasons – incident occurred around 11am in Nabinagar, around 169km southwest of Patna, when two bootleggers on a motorbike were on their way to deliver their stock of Jharkhand-made country liquor. The cartons fell on the road, some of the pouches tore, and the liquor started flowing.

Many passers-by at the sub-divisional town, around 40 km southwest of the Aurangabad district headquarters, and those riding motorbikes stopped and started collecting the pouches. Within five minutes all the pouches were gone, local residents told The Telegraph.

The Nabinagar police station is hardly 500 metres from the spot. By the time the cops rushed to the spot after being informed about the loot of liquor, however, residents had escaped with the pouches. The bootleggers also did not bother to collect their stock and fled.

“It was a gala time for the residents who got liquor free of cost,” said a policeman, requesting anonymity.

Nabinagar police station house officer (SHO) Vindhyachal Prasad said that the police were trying to obtain video clips of the incident from shops and other business establishments in the locality to ascertain the identity of the bootleggers as well as the people involved in looting the liquor pouches.

“Sale, consumption and possession of liquor is banned in the state since April 2016. Those found to be flouting the rules will be liable for punishment under the provisions of Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act 2016,” SHO Prasad promised.

The police have also launched investigation to ascertain the identity of the bootleggers. The investigating officials have been asked to trace the motorbike which was being used in the delivery of the consignment.

“It is our top priority to nab the offenders,” the SHO said.

Courtesy: The Telegraph