It is going to be a long haul for the United Democratic Front (UDF) leadership to arrive at a fair decision on the issue of renewing liquor bar licences mainly because most of the leaders of the constituent parties are reluctant to get involved in the process.
After reaching nowhere in their attempts to resolve their differences, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee president V.M. Sudheeran and Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala had decided to elevate the status of their dialogues to the UDF level by getting the leaders of constituent parties involved.
However, several senior leaders would prefer to leave it to the Congress to sort out the issue since the party was handling the Excise portfolio.
Mr. Sudheeran has reiterated his stand against the renewal of bar licences without a proper evaluation.
Main issue
The main issue, according to him, is the proliferation of liquor dens and the easy availability of liquor, which is a major social evil in Kerala. Instead of merely talking tall about prohibition, he has been goading his party workers to take a proactive stance towards the issue.
On his part, he promptly issued notices to all functionaries of the Congress, especially in the local bodies ruled by the Congress-led UDF, not to give ‘no objection certificates’ for opening new bars.
He has also got the KPCC executive to agree to an anti-liquor campaign, beginning with a drive within the government by getting various departments come on a common platform for this purpose.
His take on the issue is that the Congress should take an affirmative stand and take the initiative against proliferation of liquor outlets.
CM’s concerns
As far as the Chief Minister and Excise Minister K. Babu are concerned, they fully share the concerns of Mr. Sudheeran, but their perspectives are conditioned by their official positions.
Mr. Chandy even went to the extent of stating that the government would not hesitate to forgo revenue from liquor. At the same time, he made it clear that since he was the head of administration, he would have to consider several legal and administrative aspects before taking a decision.
UDF policy
Ever since returning to office in 2011, the UDF’s liquor policy has been aimed at restricting bar licences to higher categories, with the result that only five-star hotels are now eligible for licence in the third year of UDF reign.
The legal issues apart, the government would also have to ensure availability of good quality liquor, without letting the grey market to get the upper hand from the gaps in the trade.
Through discussions, the Congress leaders were able to defuse the air of confrontation that had been gradually emerging on the bar licence issue.
As it turned out, they appeared to be in agreement in belling the cat, but seemed not sure about how to go about it.
Mr. Sudheeran said the first of the consultations with the UDF leaders would be held most probably on Wednesday.
The IUML’s stand on liquor is well known, with its religious connotation. The Kerala Congress (M) would go along with whatever decision the Congress might take, but party leaders said that it would be only fair to give a chance for these bars to improve their standards within a stipulated time, as suggested by the Ramachandaran committee.