Patna, Sep 3 (IANS): It can happen only in Bihar. Even the dead are said to be stealing electricity and they have been accused of it.

During a special drive against power thefts, electricity department officials lodged a police complaint against Singhasan Choudhary and Ram Nagina Singh of Parari village in Rohtas district for stealing electricity last month.

A police team that visited the village was stunned when villagers told it that both Choudhary and Singh had died long back.

"While inquiring into a power theft case, we found two dead people were made accused in the case," police official Abhinandan Kumar Singh said.

According to police officials, the case was lodged on the basis of a statement by the electricity department's junior engineer Ajay Kumar Singh last month.

Police officials were given copies of death certificates issued by the village panchayat. The certificates said Choudhary died in 2000 and Singh breathed his last in 2004.

"Ajay, in a written complaint, submitted to the police, said he had visited the village along with four other employees and found Choudhary and Singh were consuming power without any authorised power connection," police said.

In view of rampant power thefts, the state government constituted a Special Task Force and vigilance squads for special drive to check it.

"The department has registered FIRs (First Information Reports) against 200 persons and arrested over two dozen for allegedly indulging in power thefts in the past six months," department official Hare Ram Pandey said.