Bagaha: A late-night raid by police in Bihar’s Valmiki Tiger Reserve (VTR) led to the arrest of nine individuals, including four forest department personnel, after they were allegedly found consuming alcohol in violation of the state’s prohibition laws.
The incident occurred on Saturday night in the Madanpur forest area, located near the Bihar-Uttar Pradesh border. Acting on a tip-off, Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO) Kumar Devendra led a team from the Naurangiya police station to the residence of a forest guard, where the illicit gathering was underway.
According to officials, the raid was carried out at around 11pm. Police recovered approximately six litres of liquor from the scene, along with 24 empty beer cans and four sealed ones. The discovery reportedly shocked the police team, given the sensitive nature of the location and the involvement of government staff.
The four foresters arrested have been identified as Rajesh Roshan (Madanpur forest area), Sonu Kumar (Naurangiya forest complex), Mukesh Kumar Madhukar (Chiutahan forest area), and Naveen Kumar, a resident of Nalanda.
Five civilians were also taken into custody. They have been named as Gyan Ranjan Kumar, Akhilesh Kumar, and Basant Raj—all from Nalanda—Sangam Kumar from Begusarai, and Shekhar Kumar from Patna. One of the civilians is reportedly an acquaintance of one of the foresters and had come to visit the reserve.
Ajay Kumar, officer-in-charge of Naurangiya police station, confirmed the operation. “We received information late on Saturday night that a liquor party was taking place at a forester’s residence inside VTR. A raid was conducted under the leadership of SDPO Kumar Devendra. About two dozen beer cans were recovered. All nine individuals will face action under Bihar’s prohibition laws,” he said.
