Dare to ban alcohol and you will win: Nitish's advice to UP CM Akhilesh

Patna: Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar who stormed to power in last year’s November Assembly election, has some advice to offer Akhilesh Yadav on winning the Uttar Pradesh polls – try banning alcohol.

With the Samajwadi Party facing internal rifts in its ranks, Nitish feels that if Akhilesh puts a prohibition law in place in UP, he will not need anybody’s support to win elections.

Nitish said he would extend his support to the UP CM, if he decides to ban alcohol in the state.

"There is a saying in English — No risk, No gain ... you are young ... take a risk (of implementing prohibition) to come out of the family shadow and ensure victory in elections," said Nitish Kumar, referring to the family feud in SP.

Nitish had won an overwhelming support of women voters based on his promise to ban liquor in the state last year. He followed up his promise with strict very strict anti-liquor laws.

"There 's no gain without a risk, so unless you dare to do something drastic you can't achieve big political goals," Nitish said.

He however slammed the SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav and said "We had offered him the post of president in the reunited Janata Parivar and also the head of the group in Parliament. But, he walked out and the role he played in Bihar elections, it seems brought him a curse, which has been manifested in the intense feud in his party."

He was speaking at the plenary session of the two-day JD(U) national council meeting which ended on Monday. His appointment as JD(U) president was ratified by the council in which over 170 delegates from 23 states participated.

Kumar told party workers from across the country that the message of prohibition was a "positive agenda" to build a national alternative to the present dispensation at the Centre, which rode to power on the basis of "advertisement".