The State Government’s decision to relax liquor selling hours for the IMFL on shops and bars in Bhubaneswar, Cuttack and Puri cities till 1 am of January 1 drew flak from Congress and BJP on Tuesday.
Congress MLA Santosh Singh Saluja said to collect more revenue the Government double policy is one hand allowing the liquor shops to open beyond the midnight would lead to everyone consuming liquor and the result would be road mishaps. On the other hand, the Government is enforcing rules against drunk driving and would collect fines from the rule violators. The officers, who have taken the decision, should be arrested in place of the drunk drivers and Government should be held responsible for the road accidents, said Saluja.
BJP leader and Union Minister Pratap Sarangi said this is a very wrong decision and liquor sell should not be promoted. Former Chief Minister Nabakrushna Chaudhury had taken a decision to prohibit liquor in the State. But that decision has been thrown to the garbage dump.
In another development, demonstrations were held by the Students’ Congress and Milita Odisha Nishanibaran Abhiyan (MONA) in Bhubaneswar opposing the decision. The Students Congress activists squatted before the residence of the Excise Minister Niranjan Pujari. The agitators said the Government decision would encourage anti-socials and other lumpen elements who would make the streets for women unsafe.
The MONA held a demonstration at Master Canteen Square against the decision. Its leader Prahallad Sinha said the Government is talking about the ideals of the Mahatma Gandhi and on the other hand promoting liquor. This would lead to a spurt in crime and destroy the life of many youths. He demanded that the Government implement total prohibition in 2020.
However, Excise Minister Pujari said the decision was taken “only for a day”.