You are drunk on power, Hazare tells Kejriwal

The social worker hit out at the Delhi CM over his liquor policy Mumbai Social activist Anna Hazare, in his first letter to Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal since the latter assumed office, has sharply critiqued his government’s liquor policy

Mumbai Social activist Anna Hazare, in his first letter to Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal since the latter assumed office, has sharply critiqued his government’s liquor policy. Hazare said Kejriwal is ‘drunk on power’ and has forgotten his ideals expressed in his book, ‘Swaraj’.

Accusing Kejriwal for not walking the talk, Hazare pointed out how in his book ‘Swaraj’ Kejriwal had offered solutions to many problems, leading people to have faith in his ideals and fix their expectations of him (HT Photo)

Hazare, while speaking to the media briefly on Tuesday, said, “I have not written any letter to Kejriwal since he became the chief minister; but since this is an important social issue, I chose to speak up. The Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22 is completely wrong and will ruin families, impacting women. The youth -- the strength of our country -- will be destroyed because of the policy.”

Accusing Kejriwal for not walking the talk, Hazare pointed out how in his book ‘Swaraj’ Kejriwal had offered solutions to many problems, leading people to have faith in his ideals and fix their expectations of him – all of which were forgotten after he became the chief minister.

“You have left your ideology behind. The policy introduced by you will promote the production and consumption of liquor in Delhi. It will pave the way for liquor shops in every nook and corner and encourage rampant corruption. It is not in the interest of people; but it appears like the drunk people, you too are ‘drunk on power’,” Hazare said in the letter.

Kejriwal, in his book, ‘Swaraj’, had pointed out how liquor licences are issued by bribing officers, on the recommendations of politicians. The mushrooming of the liquor shops, for which no referendum is taken, corrupt families. Kejriwal’s solution to the menace was issuing licences to liquor shops only with the consent of the concerned gram panchayat and 90% of women attending the gram sabha.

Hazare in his letter also referenced Maharashtra government’s policy after his protests. The law enacted by Maharashtra government empowers the village panchayat to ban liquor sale in villages if 51% of women in the village pass a resolution for the same.

“I was expecting a similar policy by the Delhi government, but Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) did not do it. You too have been engulfed in a vicious circle of ‘power from money and money from power’. This is not expected from the party which emerged from a historic movement. It is now treading the path taken by other political parties,” Hazare has stated in the letter.

“During a meeting of Team Anna on September 18, 2012, AAP floated the idea of taking a political path. You forgot that forming a political party was not the aim of the movement. There was a need to go to the public for education and awareness. Had it been done, a wrong policy on alcoholism would not have been made in the country,” the letter stated. Hazare underscored that a pressure group should have been formed to force the government to work in the interest of people.

Kerjiwal and deputy CM of Delhi Manish Sisodia were part of Hazare’s Jan Andolan to push for the Lokpal in the country in 2012.

The liquor policy was passed by the Kejriwal-led cabinet in 2021. After the CBI filed a case of alleged corruption in the liquor policy, it was withdrawn by the government.