Uma Bharti wants alcohol ban in every BJP-ruled state; cites Bihar's example under Nitish

A row has broken out in Madhya Pradesh after state Home minister Narottam Mishra said that new liquor shops will be opened in the state. Entering the debate, senior BJP leader Uma Bharti has appealed to BJP national president JP Nadda to ban alcohol in every BJP-ruled state. She has said that the delay of the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government to decide on the issue is welcomed and suggested that he should not go ahead with the plan. This comes as former CM and Congress leader Kamal Nath criticised the state government saying that BJP has made a U-turn after the elections and is turning Madhya Pradesh into a "land of liquor."

Amid the war-of-words between BJP and Congress, Chief Minister Chouhan said on Thursday that the government is yet to take a decision on the issue. Chouhan said no new liquor shops had been set up during his tenure as Chief Minister. Notably, the same proposal of increasing the number of liquor shops had come up in February last year, under then CM Kamal Nath.

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Uma Bharti's appeal

Senior BJP leader Uma Bharti said that alcohol was banned during COVID-induced lockdown, and it was a proud moment for the country that people didn't die due to alcohol. She said that recently a large number of people died in UP and Madhya Pradesh, due to hooch and in various accidents because of drink and drive. She then added that it is the government that encourages people to drink alcohol in greed of revenue, but, she opined that the revenue loss can be recovered by other means. To buttress her point, she mentioned the case of Bihar where alcohol is banned since 2016: "In Bihar elections, BJP won and we have seen how women voted en masse for Nitish Kumar due to the alcohol ban," she said.

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