Ramesh Chennithala says CM is 1st accused in liquor scam

Thiruvananthapuram: Opposition Leader Ramesh Chennithala has alleged that the controversial file on the distilleries was with Excise Minister T.P. Ramakris-hnan for seven months and eight days to settle the ‘deal.’ “Despite the orders of the deputy secretary and additional chief secretary that san-ction should not be granted to Sree Chakra Distilleries, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan overruled it,” Mr Chen-nithala said here on Wednesday. He asked the excise minister to resign and added that Mr Pina-rayi Vijayan is the first accused in the biggest scam in the state. “If the excise minister cannot give a convincing reply, he should step down,” he said.

Mr Chennithala’s fre-sh charges were in retaliation for the attacks made by Mr Pinarayi Vijayan against him earlier. Mr Chennithala said that the chief minister had signed on the file on July 7, the day when Kuttanad was hit by heavy floods.

"There is no such policy or law to grant distilleries and breweries. The CM is trying to cover up the scam in which he is the first accused. The excise deputy secretary had written in the file that sanction cannot be granted for distilleries and breweries," said Mr Chennithala.

He said the LDF government was ignoring the LDF manifesto that had stated that the availability of liquor will be brought down. If the decision taken in 1999 had not come up as a policy matter, it should have been ratified in another cabinet meeting, he said and reiterated that the excise department cannot give in- principle or even a preliminary sanction for distilleries and breweries. "There is a mystery in all the four applications to start the distilleries and breweries. Kinfra general manager (projects) got the job by forging his documents and now he has return-ed a favour to the LDF government," he added. 

CM refutes allegations

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan  has said opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala’s charge that the sanction for breweries in Kannur, Palakkad and Ernakulam were giv-en by flouting norms, without inviting bid and in a clandestine manner was totally unfounded.  During the Cabinet briefing on Wednesday Mr Vijayan pointed out that though an application came for consideration before the LDF Government in 1998 for setting up a brewery unit, the applicants obtained the licence only in 2003 when the A.K. Antony-led UDF government was in power.

He also refuted Chennithala’s charge that the LDF had violated its liquor policy.  “We had clearly mentioned that LDF policy is not prohibition but abstinence. The LDF government was for phased reduction in availability and consumption of liquor,” he said. Mr Vijayan said sanction has been given to three brewer-ies to set up two vending units, compounding and bottling units. He said breweries will incre-ase the manufacturing capacity in the state. Presntly 8 percent liquor and 40 percent beer comes from outside the state.

 The setting up of breweries here will adversely affect the business of liquor lobby based outside the state. The LDF leaders suspect that powerful liquor lobby was behind the opposition allegations.