Punjab AAP accuses guv of not taking action against liquor smuggling

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Sunday targeted Punjab governor and Chandigarh administrator Banwarilal Purohit accusing him of not taking action to stop liquor smuggling from Chandigarh to Punjab

Chandigarh : The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Sunday targeted Punjab governor and Chandigarh administrator Banwarilal Purohit accusing him of not taking action to stop liquor smuggling from Chandigarh to Punjab.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Sunday targeted Punjab governor and Chandigarh administrator Banwarilal Purohit accusing him of not taking action to stop liquor smuggling from Chandigarh to Punjab.

The claim was made by AAP state chief spokesperson Malvinder Singh Kang, who said that a large quantity of illegal and adulterated liquor is being smuggled from Chandigarh to Punjab every day. Kang alleged that the governor constantly questions the Punjab government on the issue of drugs, but he is not taking any action to stop liquor smuggling from Chandigarh to Punjab. “Due to this, Chandigarh is also facing financial loss,” he claimed in a statement issued here.

The AAP’s attack on Purohit came just days before he is slated to undertake a tour of border districts of Punjab this week. During his earlier visit to border areas, the governor had voiced serious concern over rampant illegal mining and drug menace. In a letter to chief minister Bhagwant Mann last month also, Purohit sought a report from the state government on the action taken with regard to rampant availability and abuse of drugs in the state.

“It is common knowledge that they are available in chemist shops and a new trend is observed that they are being sold in government-controlled liquor vends,” he said, citing the recent action by Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) and Chandigarh Police who sealed 66 liquor vends in Ludhiana that are selling drugs.

Purohit and Mann have been at odds over several other issues for almost a year, including the appointment of vice-chancellors, the convening of special assembly sessions, and the CM’s absence from official functions.

In his statement, Kang also said that since the governor of Punjab is the administrator of Chandigarh, it is his responsibility to stop liquor smuggling into the state. Kang appealed to the governor that being the administrator of Chandigarh, he should take appropriate measures in this regard.

“There is a big difference between questioning others and correcting oneself. Therefore, now the governor should improve the administration of Chandigarh and curb the liquor mafia before questioning the Punjab government on the same matter,” he said.

Earlier, Punjab’s excise commissioner Varun Roojam also wrote to the finance secretary of Chandigarh administration to draw his attention to large scale smuggling of liquor, and requested him to review the enforcement measures to put a stop to such illegal activities.

“The excise department of Punjab has in the recent past confiscated huge quantities of liquor coming from Chandigarh which is a worrying trend,” he wrote on September 12, pointing out that 184 FIRs had been registered and 2,916 cases of smuggled liquor confiscated between April 1 and August 31. He also alleged that such large-scale smuggling was not possible without an active support of manufactures and/or traders in Chandigarh. “These malpractices are not only jeopardizing the revenues of the state of Punjab, but it is also affecting the revenues of Chandigarh,” he added, urging the city administration to enquire into the complete supply chain (backward and forward linkages) to uncover the real culprits and proceeded against them as per law.