JOIN USLiquor mafia operating in Punjab, Centre should probe: Congress MP
Charging that a liquor mafia was operating in Punjab under political patronage, a Congress MP from the state on Friday demanded the Centre's intervention and probe into the matter through the CBI or independent agencies.
Congress MP Shamsher Singh Dullo raised the matter during the Zero Hour in the Upper House of Parliament, saying "no action" has been taken in the matter despite 136 people losing their lives in the state recently after consuming spurious liquor.
Dullo said, in the recent hooch tragedy in the state, 150 people were hospitalised in addition to 136 deaths.
While several people have turned blind after drinking spurious liquor, kidneys of many have been impacted but no action has been taken against the perpetrators of the crime, he said, demanding compensation for the family of those killed and impacted.
Parliament Monsoon Session live: Centre used homeopathy's 'meethi goli' to end employment, says AAP's Sanjay Singh
He charged that the "liquor mafia in the state was operating under political patronage" and there was a police nexus.
Nine illegal distilleries were being run and supplying liquor to neighbouring Haryana, Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh among other states, the MP said.
He said neighbouring countries were involved in it and demanded the Centre's intervention to probe the issue through the CBI a retired high court judge or any independent agency so that culprits could be booked.
Dullo said he met the governor of the state but no action has been taken and that the matter pertains to inter-state illegal racket and theft of taxes.
Raising another issue during the Zero Hour, Tiruchi Siva (DMK) demanded 90 per cent representation in jobs to residents of the state in local enterprises, saying at present there is an unequal representation of states in Central government jobs.
In the recently conducted exams in the state for various central government undertakings including Chennai Petrol, the percentage of locals was minimum, he said.
In Tamil Nadu alone, 84 lakh people have registered themselves with employment exchanges and the percentage of unemployment was 7.6 per cent despite the youth there being qualified and securing top ranks in the UPSC, he said.
He also noted that highly qualified people had applied for the post of sanitary workers due to high unemployment in the state.