A man, who applied for grant of licence to open a liquor outlet in Sarangapur mandal, caused a flutter by allegedly attempting suicide in Jagtial town in protest against the postponement of draw of lots for the particular liquor shop for want of the required number of applications on Saturday.
In sharp contrast to huge response for the auction of liquor outlets elsewhere in the district and State, the liquor shop in Sarangapur mandal received only six applications as against the stipulated minimum number of 10 applications, required to conduct draw of lots, sources said.
Minutes after the postponement of the draw of lots for the Sarangapur shop, an aggrieved applicant ran out of the venue on the Gollapally road in Jagtial and doused himself with petrol in an adjoining agricultural field.
The police on bandobust duty immediately responded and foiled his bid. The aggrieved applicant expressed his anguish over the postponement of the draw of lots for the liquor shop in the Sarangapur mandal for which he pooled in money and paid the non-refundable application fee.
Official sources maintained that the draw of lots for the liquor shop in Sarangapur mandal will be held within the stipulated time frame as per the norms.
In a separate incident, an aggrieved applicant tried to stage a protest at the venue of draw of lots in Kumarambheem Asifabad district after the process of draw of lots in respect of one liquor shop in an interior village was postponed due to lower number of applications than the stipulated number.
According to sources, the auction process went off smoothly elsewhere in the district with many liquor shops receiving a large number of applications mainly in the towns, generating windfall revenue for the State treasury.
(Roshini - Suicide Prevention Helpline: 040-66202000)
