Here is to alcohol: the cause of, and answer to, all of life’s problems- Mike Groening

The Nitish Kumar government banned alcohol in Bihar after coming to power. They promised this before they were voted in. They also promised to put all adult members of a household in jail if a bottle of liquor was found in their house. Calling this a draconian law is probably an understatement. Calling this a cheap trick to attract voters by the Nitish Kumar led government is also an understatement. The fact of the matter is that when you tell people how to live your life you are inviting trouble. The JDU decided to impose this law because they felt that the downtrodden were losing their opportunities and engaging in domestic violence regularly. They also felt that Bihar was underdeveloped in phases and parts and that is because of the evils of alcohol. Dear JDU, Bihar is not the only state that has rampant crimes related to the vices of alcohol. It is not the only state that is inflicted with domestic violence and low productivity. Literacy rates from across the country place Bihar at the bottom with Dadar & Haveli and Daman and Diu having a better standing. What the current government did was not only wrong but also digressive of the real issue – Education. States where literacy rates were high reported lesser crimes related to alcohol. Educating people was probably tougher for the current establishment of Bihar and that is why they adopted the callous attitude of deciding for themselves as to what people should adhere to socially. This not only invited black marketing & bootlegging, it promoted corrupt babugiri. The Patna high court has struck down this order and re-established faith in the judiciary as a protector of human rights and more so of the rights of people who can choose for themselves as to which vices they adopt.