Congress leader Satheesan alleges 'corruption motive' behind new liquor policy of Kerala govt

Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) [India], March 31 (ANI): With the Kerala government rolling out a new liquor policy for the next fiscal, the Leader of Opposition and Congress leader V D Satheesan on Thursday slammed the government saying they want "to encourage corruption".
Satheesan also hit out at Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan saying that when Vijayan was the state secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), he promised to reduce the number of liquor shops in the state.
"With regards to starting of breweries and distilleries in Kerala, there was corruption allegation against them (LDF government). Then they were forced to withdraw and now they are trying to bring it back," the Congress leader.
He said people have not complained about the "lack of liquor shops" in Kerala.
"When the chief minister was the secretary of CPI(M), he declared that we will try to reduce the number of liquor shops in Kerala. And CPI-M and LDF cooperated with the anti-liquor force in Kerala. When he became the chief minister of Kerala, he is changing the entire policy. This is all for corruption," he added.
Noting that the state has "sufficient number liquor shops," Satheesan questioned the new liquor policy that facilitates the manufacturing of liquor and wine from locally available fruits, opening up of new retail outlets and permitting liquor licence at IT parks.
"What is this policy? This policy is totally disgusting. Opposition parties do not know where it has been formulated and how it has been formulated," Satheesan said.
The state Cabinet on Wednesday approved the new liquor policy for the financial year 2022-23. The policy seeks to augment local production of fruit-based liquor and boost the cultivation of banana, pineapple, jackfruit, cashew and nutmeg in the state. (ANI)