Thiruvananthapuram: KPCC president V. M. Sudheeran has criticised Tourism Minister A. C. Moideeen's view that liquor should be made available at tourism spots to attract more tourists to the state. “The LDF ministers are trying to reopen the closed bars due to the unholy nexus the Left front had brokered with the bar owners association during the run-up to the Assembly elections,” he told reporters in New Delhi.
Referring to Mr Moideeen's comment that the liquor policy has to be changed, he asked the LDF government to hold a referendum. “Are the tourists coming to Kerala to consume liquor alone? The LDF government is trying to sabotage the liquor policy of the UDF government that had received widespread approval,” said Mr Sudheeran.
He refuted the claim that the arrival of tourists in the state had come down and said their visit did not depend on the flow of liquor. “If the tourists are keen to consume liquor, there are many ways to have it,” he said. “The ministers with trade union background are trivialising the interests of the workers and common people and trying to camouflage the evils of liquor,” added Mr Sudheeran.
