Kerala’s Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan on May 24 demanded the resignation of Minister of Excise M.B. Rajesh alleging corruption in the Kerala government’s move to tweak the State’s liquor policy in favour of bar owners.
Mr. Satheesan raised the demand following the alleged leak of an audio message suspected to be that of a district leader of the Federation of Kerala Hotels Association. In the audio clip, he is heard demanding bar owners in his region to contribute about ₹2.5 lakh each while pointing out that “nobody will help them [bar owners] without paying” to achieve their long-standing demand for dropping dry days and allowing extended working hours for bars.
He is also heard saying that a new liquor policy will come into effect after the results of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections are declared.
Mr. Satheesan alleged that the call for funds collection would not have taken place without the approval from the government.
“Where is the currency counting machine? Is it in the hands of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan or at the AKG Centre [State headquarters of the Communist Party of India (Marxist)]?” he asked referring to the allegation by the Left front against the late Minister of Finance K.M. Mani that he had kept a currency counting machine at his residence to count the alleged bribe received from bar owners in connection with the controversial bar bribery case that rocked the United Democratic Front (UDF) government in the 2011-16 period.
Mr. Satheesan alleged corruption to the tune of about ₹20 crore in the name of tweaking the liquor policy in favour of bar owners. He also alleged corruption in the “continuing reluctance” on the part of the Kerala government to collect huge GST arrears from bar owners.
“There was no consultation with the Opposition in the proposed amendments to the liquor policy, including the move to open pubs in IT parks in the State. We had opposed the move to lift the dry day on the first of all months,” he said.
Mr. Satheesan said the Left government, which came to power in 2016 with the promise of reducing the availability of liquor, gave licence to 669 bars. In its second term, the government has already issued licence to 130 bars, pointing towards widespread corruption in the allotment of bars, he alleged.
Blame for Periyar fish kill
On the mass fish kill in the Periyar river, Mr. Satheesan blamed the government for failing to initiate concrete steps to check the illegal discharge of effluents from the industrial units in the Eloor-Edayar industrial area.
Stringent action should be taken against the laxity on the part of the Kerala State Pollution Control Board for not conducting periodic testing of water samples and failing to act against erring units, he said.
