Bitten by snake, held by cops: Man's hospital dash cut short for 'liquor check'; victim dies in Bihar

PATNA: A 23-year-old man, who was running towards hospital after being bitten by snake, died in Kaimur district on Thursday, following a prolonged detention midway by police, who suspected he had consumed liquor.
The family members of victim Ram Lakhan Prasad alleged the police suspected that he was running away to escape arrest for consuming liquor, and detained him.
They alleged the police demanded Rs 2,000 for his release and kept him detained for over three hours till his elder brother rescued him after giving “Rs 700 to the cops”. Subdivisional police officer (SDPO) Shiv Shankar Kumar, however, denied the claims of bribery.
Kaimur superintendent of police Lalit Mohan Sharma said he had ordered an inquiry into the matter. “The SDPO has been asked to probe into the incident and submit a report within three days. Actions against the officers, if found guilty, will be taken once we get the probe report,” he said.
The family said Prasad was bitten by a snake on their agricultural field at Nimiyatand village under Chainpur police station on Wednesday night.
Prasad then started running towards the nearest hospital, only to be stopped by a police patrol vehicle, according to the family members, who alleged he was detained on the charge of illegal drinking.
“My brother repeatedly told the cops that he was bitten by a snake, and that he was running to reach the nearby hospital, but they didn’t pay heed and demanded Rs 2,000 in lieu of his release. This wasted a lot of precious time leading to my brother’s death,” elder brother Joginder Bind alleged on Friday.
Bind added he was irrigating crops on the field when Prasad called him to bring money. “I, somehow, arranged Rs 700 by midnight and rushed to the detention spot on cycle. Soon after his release, I admitted him to the local government hospital, but he had collapsed by then and died on Thursday,” he said.