Dramatic scenes played out at an event attended by Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Friday as people looted fishes kept in a tank as part of an exhibition in Saharsa district of the state.
According to a report by India Today, Kumar had arrived in Saharsa to take part in several government programmes including inauguration of the Maa Vishhari temple located at Diwari, following which he left for Amarpur where he inspected an exhibition.
At the exhibition, a biofloc tank was installed by the fisheries department in which a lot of live fish were kept. As soon as he left the exhibition, people started looting the fish after jumping into the biofloc tank.
A video of the incident is also doing rounds on social media platforms in which a huge crowd, including children, can be seen fishing out the aquatic animals with no security official in sight.
One of the viral videos even shows a youth saying, "We came here to catch the fish, not to see Nitish Kumar."
Minutes after Nitish fed the fishes...
CM Nitish Kumar had visited Saharsa to lay the foundation stone for a bridge to be built at Rs 414.74 crore over the Kosi River.
The CM also inaugurated the renovated Maa Bishahra Bhagwati Temple in Saharsa and offered prayers there.
Speaking on the incident, District Fisheries Officer Subodh Kumar told the publication that the fish tank was kept at the venue as part of a demonstration for the Chief Minister. "Instead, we ended up suffering losses," he said.
"After the event was over, people pounced on the fish, and looted it. They also damaged the biofloc tank in the process. We suffered a loss of around Rs 45,000 due to this act of the people", Kumar said.