The United Democratic Front (UDF) on Wednesday ratcheted up its campaign against the government’s decision to allow the sale of liquor during the COVID-19 outbreak.
Opposition workers attempted to disrupt toddy shop auctions and forced the closure of liquor outlets in Malappuram, Ernakulam and Alappuzha districts. Leader of the Opposition Ramesh Chennithala and former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy said the government had traded off public health for currying favour with the liquor lobby by allowing crowded Kerala State Beverages Corporation (Bevco) outlets and bars to remain open during the outbreak. They warned that the UDF would take the matter to the streets if the government did not roll back its decision that imperilled public safety.
However, Excise Minister T.P. Ramakrishnan ruled out any such rollback. He said the government had ordered Bevco employees and bar managements to prevent overcrowding in their environs and ensure social distancing. They should equip their staff with protective gear and keep water, soap and hand sanitizers at the disposal of the public.
Barge auction hall
The government's averments did not deter Youth Congress (YC) and Muslim Youth League (MYL) workers from disrupting the toddy shop auction in Malappuram. They barged into the auction hall and demanded the process be stopped and warned against overcrowding by participants.
Additional District Magistrate N.M. Meharali later suspended the auction. In Alappuzha, pandemonium prevailed when the Youth Congress and KSU activists entered the hall where the auction of toddy shops in nine ranges was progressing. A considerable number of people had turned up for sale.
The protesters objected their presence.
The police removed the activists later and the excise authorities concluded the sale process.
In Kochi, the police removed Congress workers who had temporarily shuttered a Bevco outlet. The protesters disrupted the auction of toddy shops in Ernakulam district, forcing excise officers to shift the location of sales to their office at Kacheripady.
The Excise Department later clarified that they had to complete the auction process before the start of the next fiscal, and it had observed safeguards mandated by the government to protect participants and officials from infection.
