Liquor ban to land ceilings: Bihar's reform story resurfaces before polls

As Bihar gears up for the 2025 Assembly elections, the 2016 Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act has again taken the spotlight amid criticism over its outcomes and impact on governance

Political parties in Bihar are preparing for the upcoming Assembly elections by reviving old debates and intensifying their criticism of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar’s government, particularly on the liquor ban and long-stalled land reforms.

 

The Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act, 2016, has once again taken center stage. The law sought to promote complete prohibition by banning the manufacture, sale, transport, storage, and consumption of all forms of liquor and intoxicants across the state.

Liquor ban in focus again

 

Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav has said the liquor ban policy imposed by Nitish Kumar can be reviewed if his party comes to power, The Statesman reported. Election strategist and Jan Suraaj founder Prashant Kishor went a step further, claiming that if his party is voted to power, the liquor ban would be lifted within an hour.

 

Questioning the move by Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal (United), which introduced the liquor ban while part of the Mahagathbandhan, Kishor asked why such a law was not implemented nationwide if it had indeed reduced violence and empowered women.  ALSO READ | PM Modi slams Congress, RJD for 'devastated' education system in Bihar

Did the liquor ban fail?

 

Once considered a social reform, the liquor prohibition law is now widely criticised for burdening the legal system and fuelling the sale of spurious liquor. According to The Indian Express, 30 hooch cases were lodged between 2016 and 2023, resulting in 199 deaths, but not a single conviction.

 

Live Hindustan quoted Kishor as saying that there is “no real liquor ban” in Bihar, only shops have shut while home delivery thrives. He added that the state loses ₹15,000–20,000 crore annually to the liquor mafia.

 

According to The New Indian Express, over 640,000 people have been convicted under the law, and nine have received death sentences.

 

In November 2024, the Patna High Court criticised the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act, saying that while the law aimed to improve living standards and public health, it had “ended up on the wrong side of history” by creating a new wave of smuggling and crime.  ALSO READ | Bihar elections 2025: How the 2000 Jharkhand split reshaped Bihar's economy

Bihar’s long road on land reforms

 

Bihar’s land reform efforts began soon after Independence, making it the first Indian state to abolish zamindari through the Abolition of Zamindari Act (1948) and the Bihar Land Reforms Act (1950). These sought to transfer estates from landlords to the government for redistribution among tenants and landless farmers.

 

However, according to a Frontline report, the state’s pioneering land reform legislation failed to take root due to weak political will and resistance from landed elites.

 

The Land Ceiling Act (1961) aimed to cap land ownership by setting legal limits per family, but loopholes such as benami transfers helped landlords evade restrictions. In 1970, then chief minister Karpoori Thakur revived reforms, waiving land revenue for small farmers and pushing redistribution to landless Dalits, reforms that earned him posthumous recognition with the Bharat Ratna.

 

After Thakur’s tenure, Bihar’s land reforms stagnated for decades. In 2020, Nitish Kumar’s government introduced a statewide digital land survey that identified 17.8 lakh acres of government land for verification. Dynamic village maps were also introduced to automatically update ownership records.  ALSO READ | Bihar election 2025: How caste coalitions will drive strategies and outcome

Fallout of key policies

 

While the 2016 liquor prohibition initially bolstered Nitish Kumar’s image among women voters, it also triggered hooch tragedies and hurt related industries. Bihar Tourism Minister Raju Singh said in May 2025 that the liquor ban had affected the state’s hotel, film, and tourism sectors.

 

Despite mounting criticism, most parties continue to focus on the liquor policy, while land reform, once the cornerstone of Bihar’s social justice politics, remains largely absent from current election debates.