As the debate over a possible liquor ban in Jammu and Kashmir intensified, National Conference president and former Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah on Tuesday said even NC founder Sheikh Abdullah had not imposed such a ban, arguing that people who consume alcohol would continue to procure it from outside the Union Territory if prohibited locally.
Meanwhile, Hurriyat Conference chairman and Kashmir’s chief cleric Mirwaiz Umar Farooq asserted that alcohol “deeply harms society” and questioning the rationale behind acting against drugs while ignoring liquor.
Calls for a liquor ban in the Union Territory have grown in recent weeks amid the ongoing ‘Nasha Mukt J&K Abhiyan’, one of the region’s largest anti-drug campaigns.
The ruling National Conference and opposition Peoples Democratic Party on Monday traded barbs over the contentious issue after Chief Minister Omar Abdullah sparked a controversy by remarking, “Did anyone force you to drink?” The statement drew criticism from several quarters, prompting the Chief Minister to later issue a clarification.
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of an event in Srinagar, Mirwaiz said the campaign against drug abuse would not achieve its desired results unless action was also taken against liquor, which he said was equally harmful to families and society.
“Both drugs and alcohol deeply damage society. The government cannot justify acting against one while remaining silent on the other,” he said.
Mirwaiz also noted that although Jammu and Kashmir is a Muslim-majority region where alcohol consumption is socially and religiously discouraged, several Indian states with non-Muslim majorities have also imposed restrictions or bans on liquor due to its adverse social impact.
Farooq Abdullah, meanwhile, said people who consume alcohol would continue to do so even if liquor was banned in Jammu and Kashmir.
“I don’t drink alcohol. Those who drink will continue to drink. If they don’t get it here, they will get it from outside. What can we do about that?” he told reporters.
Recalling a conversation between his father Sheikh Abdullah and former Prime Minister Morarji Desai, who had once suggested a liquor ban in Jammu and Kashmir, Farooq said, “My father had told him that if the Centre compensated the revenue earned from liquor sales, then the ban could be implemented. Even today, if the Government of India compensates that revenue, the government can ban liquor in two minutes.”
He also said the National Conference had not introduced liquor shops in the region and questioned why no objections were raised when such outlets were opened earlier.
Meanwhile, Apni Party president and former minister Altaf Bukhari also supported the demand for a liquor ban in Jammu and Kashmir.
