Member of Parliament and PCC President V. Vaithilingam addressing the media at the party office in Puducherry on Thursday.
| Photo Credit: S.S. Kumar
Criticising the AINRC-BJP government for its decision to issue fresh permits for liquor manufacturing units in Puducherry, MP and PCC chief V. Vaithilingam on Friday (March 14, 2025) said the administration should take over liquor manufacturing and distribution network in Puducherry for augmenting own revenue resources instead of starting new distillery units.
Addressing a press conference here, the PCC chief said the Chief Minister N. Rangasamy had stated in the Assembly that the decision to allow more liquor manufacturing units was aimed at shoring up revenue and creating job opportunities.
“The government should first clarify how much revenue it was able to raise by allowing around 300 resto bars in Puducherry. The information we (Congress) have is that there is not much revenue generated from allowing resto bars. If the government is serious enough to raise revenue, it should take over manufacturing and distribution network in Puducherry. The Congress party will extend full support if such a move was taken,” the Congress chief said.
The Congress, he said, will include a commitment to implement a new liquor policy in the party manifesto. The party would bring under government control liquor manufacturing and distribution system if it comes to power in UT in the 2026 Assembly polls, the PCC president said.
When pointed about the open support given by DMK legislators for starting new distillery units, the Congress chief said each party will have its own stand on certain issues. “We are not concerned about the stand taken by the DMK on distillery issues. The Congress party is opposed to the idea of having more distilleries and we will not allow it,” he said.
Asked whether the Congress-DMK alliance was intact in Puducherry, the MP said, “We will talk about alliance at the appropriate time. The INDIA bloc continues to function in Puducherry.”
Opposes three-language policy
He also flayed the Home Minister A. Namassivayam for his statement that Puducherry will follow the three-language policy. The three-language policy was brought by the Union government to propagate the Hindi language, he said.
“As part of implementing three-language policy, the Puducherry government was planning to recruit Hindi teachers. The Congress party will not allow the implementation of the three-language policy,” he said.
Mr. Vaithilingam said the Congress party has welcomed the welfare initiatives proposed in the Budget. “After the loss of Lok Sabha seat in Puducherry, the government has learned its lessons and has initiated welfare measures. We welcome the decision to increase the financial assistance given to women from ₹1, 000 to ₹2,500,” he said.
Published – March 14, 2025 03:52 pm IST