’Within an hour’: Prashant Kishor vows to end Bihar liquor ban if Jan Suraaj party wins Assembly elections

Political analyst Prashant Kishor has vowed to end the Bihar liquor ban ‘within an hour’ if his newly formed party was elected to power. The

“There is no need for any special preparation for the 2nd. We have been preparing for the last two years... If the Jan Suraj government is formed, we will end the liquor ban within one hour,” he told ANI.

Jan Suraaj is slated to become a political party within the next few weeks and plans to contest "all 243 seats" in Bihar. During a recent presser the former JD(U) leader said his party would be formed on October 2 “with active support of at least one crore people of the state — which would leave no need for any alliance”.

The IPAC founder has been a vocal critic of the oft touted prohibition law in Bihar and considers it ‘ineffective’. He recently claimed that the ban had led to illegal home deliveries of alcohol and deprived the state of ₹20,000 crore in potential excise revenue. Kishor has previously accused politicians and bureaucrats of benefiting from the illegal liquor trade.

"The prohibition law is nothing but a sham (dhakosla) on part of Nitish Kumar," he added.

Kishor lambasted both Nitish Kumar and Tejashwi Yadav for their political track record on Sunday, insisting that the duo should leave the state. The assertion comes amid a growing war of words following the RJD leader's claim that the Chief Minister had ‘apologised with folded hands’ for joining the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance.

“This issue is between Nitish Kumar and Tejashwi Yadav, and it doesn't matter who apologised with folded hands to whom; both have caused damage to Bihar. The people of Bihar have witnessed both of them for 30 years. We are urging them both to leave Bihar,” Kishor opined.

(With inputs from agencies)