Liquor ban: Won’t do anything that costs people’s lives: Baghel

Raipur: Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel on Wednesday spelled out his stand on prohibition in the state, saying that he isn’t going to do anything that may put lives at risk.Speaking to reporters in Raipur before leaving for a Congress workers’ meeting in Bilaspur, Baghel said: “I will not do anything that will cost lives of people, though I prefer to deaddiction (of all sorts) like gudakhu, gutkha, weed, and not just liquor. And for this, a proper environment needs to be created in society. Once members of society come forward to cooperate, steps for de-addiction will be taken.”Baghel argued that prohibition could lead to bigger dangers. “Look at states like Bihar and Gujarat, where people die from consuming spurious liquor. Even during lockdown, people died from consuming sanitizer as liquor shops were closed. If we have said something, it’s not that it has to be done without understanding what impact it may have,” he said.“It’s just a matter of a day to shut down all liquor shops, but what impact it could cause is the concern. Being a social evil, until society takes it in its own hands, we can’t declare a timeline. However, I personally want that de-addiction should take place,” the CM added.Baghel later participated in Congress’ divisional meeting to prepare for the coming assembly elections and discussed with senior party leaders in Bilaspur. One divisional meeting has already taken place in Jagdalpur and the next one will be Durg.