Congress for reintroducing arrack

Mangalore, May 4 (UNI) Senior Congress Leader and Rajya Sabha Member B Janardhan Poojary today said the party, if it came to power in the state, would re-introduce sale of arrack in Karnataka.

Addressing the press here, he said the ban on sale of arrack in the state by the previous JD(S)-BJP Government had made the poor buy costlier liquor.

With the ban, the sale of other liquor had abnormally increased.

If there is ban, it should be total, he said adding that the ban had helped only the liquor lobby and not the poor.

Criticising the comments made by Senior BJP Leader Sushma Swaraj calling the Congress leaders ''sinners,'' Mr Poojary said the BJP leaders were the real ''first class and first grade sinners'' who deceived the people with false promise of building the Ram Temple.

''Where is the money and the bricks collected from the people in the name of building Ram Temple at Ayodhya?'' he asked.

To a query, he said the UPA government was making all efforts to control the price rise of essential commodities.

It was also the responsibility of the state governments to take all necessary steps to control the prices, he added.

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