UDF’s liquor policy, Padmaja get Church nod

Thrissur: Giving cheers to the UDF camp, the Thrissur Archdiocese has said that liquor policy will be the key issue in this election and hailed the candidature of Padmaja Venugopal in the Thrissur assembly seat.
An article titled “Thrissurile rashtriya kudamattam” in the latest issue of Archdiocese’s official mouthpiece `Catholica Sabha’, while paying rich tributes to the contributions of K Karunakaran in maintaining good rapport with the Church states that “the contest in Thrissur will be a historical calling and golden opportunity for Karunakaran’s daughter.’’
However, when the articles became controversial, a spokesman clarified that it was incorrect to say that the archdiocese has thrown its weight behind the UDF.“The journal has only tried to spell out some of the key issues in the elections, and they include liquor policy, communalism, violent politics, and corruption,” he said.
Another article in the journal asserted that “the assembly election on May 16 will no doubt be a fight between those who favour and oppose liquor.”
"This is a holy war between those who try to sabotage the prohibition policy and the vast majority of conscientious people who foresee the tragic consequences of it. It must be noticed that the women and ordinary people, who do not indulge in political profit-loss calculations are in the forefront of this fight,’’ the article said.
"The UDF which has taken concrete steps against the dangers of liquor two years back is on a strong footing at least on this issue,’’ it said.