Jammu and Kashmir National Conference chief Dr Farooq Abdullah on Tuesday said the government could ban liquor in the Union Territory within two minutes if the Centre compensates for the revenue loss.
While interacting with the media in Srinagar, Farooq said he personally does not consume alcohol, but those who do would procure it from outside the Union Territory if it is banned locally. “I do not drink alcohol. Those who drink alcohol will drink. If they do not get it from here, they will bring it from outside,” he said.
“And those who are raising their voices, ask them who these people who drink alcohol are.”
He recalled an incident from 1977 when then Prime Minister Morarji Desai asked his father, former Chief Minister Sheikh Abdullah, to stop alcohol sales in the state. “My father told him that if the Centre gives us the revenue we earn from it, then we will stop it. Nothing happened,” he said, adding that if the Centre compensates for the loss of revenue today, the government could ban alcohol in two minutes.
However, Farooq Abdullah did not address the health hazards of alcohol consumption and its link to domestic violence, issues repeatedly highlighted in NCRB data. While the focus of law enforcement agencies remains on tackling drug and narcotics issues, the health and social impact of alcohol cannot be overlooked.
Bihar, one of the poorest states in the country with a population 9.5 times larger than J&K, has successfully enforced a liquor ban despite bearing the revenue losses.
Also read: Terror hideout busted in Rajouri, two held with arms in Srinagar
Follow us
