Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee president Ch. Anil Kumar said that when Delhi Congress vehemently objected to the Arvind Kejriwal Government’s move to make Delhi “Nashe Ki Rajdhani” when the new Liquor Policy was implemented by Excise Minister Manish Sisodia at the behest of Kejriwal, and held protests, agitations, dharnas, door-to-door phol-khol campaigns etc. regularly, BJP’s seven MPs, 8 MLAs and over 150 Municipal Councillors and the entire BJP organization in Delhi, including its president, remained silent, He said that the BJP’s silence inferred that it was in league with the Aam Aadmi Party in the implementation of the new Liquor Policy, which allowed the opening of 134 liquor vends in non-confirming areas, in 18 Assembly segments, in a brazen manner by the private liquor cartels, for which the permission of the DDA and MCD was required.
Congress had met Union Urban Development Minister Shri Hardeep Puri and submitted him a memorandum, objecting to the opening of liquor vends in non-confirming areas, and he had promised to look into the matter. He said that Delhi Congress objected to the new liquor policy as it was concerned with the future of the young, unemployed youth as liquor sales without any restrictions, allowing all sorts of rebates, would have destroyed the future of the young, but the BJP leaders, legislators, Mayors and councillors kept quiet after taking kickbacks from the liquor mafia. Governor ordered a CBI probe against Manish Sisodia and others for their roles in the liquor scam. He said that the Delhi Congress had complained to the Delhi Police Commissioner, the Lt. Governor and the probe agencies backed with evidence, about the corruption behind the liquor policy, which the BJP was raking up now. He said that a BJP MP, who is a singer, was busy with his recordings while a cricketer MP was busy with his commentary when Congress workers protested, as they were not concerned with the future of the youth. He said that liquor shops were opened where school buses used to be parked, and near religious places. He said that the new liberalized liquor policy ruined many families as the Delhi Government did not pay heed to the objections of housewives and women to the liquor policy.
