Bill follows criticism of Nitish Kumar government over continued rise in cases pending and sub-trial in prisons.
The Bihar Legislative Assembly on Wednesday passed the Bihar Prohibition and Excise (Amendment) Bill 2022, which aims to make the state’s alcohol ban for first-time offenders less stringent . The bill follows criticism from Nitish Kumar’s government of the continued increase in the number of cases pending in court and trials in prisons.
Under the new provisions of the bill, the state government will be empowered to impose penalties instead of direct imprisonment for certain categories of crimes. It also allows the state government to prescribe fines and jail time (in the case of repeat offenders) for alcohol consumption, according to an ANI report.
First-time offenders will be punished
instead of jail After the change, the offender will be brought before a duty judge who will decide the seriousness of the crime. After considering the circumstances, the judge can only impose a fine on the offender instead of the direct prison sentence previously provided. If the perpetrator does not pay the fine, he faces a one-month prison sentence. However, the government has not disclosed the amount of the fine that will be imposed on first-time offenders.
In particular, vehicles used for the alcohol trade would also be confiscated and then auctioned off.
Third Amendment to Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act 2016
This is the Third Amendment to the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act 2016. The first amendment to the act was introduced in 2018 and then in 2020. The bill seeks to amend the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act 2016 which enforces the total ban on alcohol and intoxicants in Bihar.
The House of Representatives passed the bill tabled by Prohibition and Excise Secretary Sunil Kumar after rejecting several proposed amendments tabled by opposition members.
During the presentation of the bill, the Minister is quoted by the PTI as having declared: “The innocent will not be assaulted, while the guilty will not be spared”. Speaking to reporters outside the rally, Ajeet Sharma, leader of the opposition Legislative Party in Congress, reportedly said: ‘The amended law will further strengthen the link between the police and the alcohol mafia in the state.
The law was passed without accepting any proposed amendments from us. Nitish Kumar’s government is reportedly planning to amend the ban law amid allegations of ‘ineffective implementation’ of the legislation and Hooch tragedies in Bihar.
The Prime Minister has been targeted by both BJP allies and the opposition RJD following the Hooch tragedies in the state which killed more than 60 people in the last six months of 2021.
A major many people are in prison solely for consuming alcohol, and the majority of them belong to economically disadvantaged sections of society. Last year, the Supreme Court ruled that the Liquor Act was disrupting the functioning of Bihar’s judicial system as 14-15 Patna High Court judges had only heard bail-related cases on bail related to arrests under Bihar’s Prohibition and Excise Act.
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