On Tuesday, 17th January 2023, Punjab’s Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann ordered the closure of a liquor factory in Zira town of the Ferozepur district of the state. Punjab’s chief minister shared this through a tweet from his Twitter handle in which he said, “After consulting legal experts, a big decision has been taken in the public interest. I have issued orders to close the Zeera Liquor Factory.”
ਪੰਜਾਬ ਦੀ ਆਬੋ-ਹਵਾ ਨੂੰ ਕਿਸੇ ਨੂੰ ਵੀ ਖਰਾਬ ਨਹੀਂ ਕਰਨ ਦਿੱਤਾ ਜਾਵੇਗਾ…ਇਸ ਕਰਕੇ ਕਾਨੂੰਨੀ ਮਾਹਿਰਾਂ ਨਾਲ ਸਲਾਹ ਕਰਨ ਤੋਂ ਬਾਅਦ ਲੋਕਹਿੱਤ ‘ਚ ਇੱਕ ਵੱਡਾ ਫੈਸਲਾ ਲਿਆ ਹੈ…
— Bhagwant Mann (@BhagwantMann) January 17, 2023
ਮੈਂ ਜ਼ੀਰਾ ਸ਼ਰਾਬ ਫੈਕਟਰੀ ਨੂੰ ਬੰਦ ਕਰਨ ਦੇ ਹੁਕਮ ਜਾਰੀ ਕਰ ਦਿੱਤੇ ਨੇ ਤੇ ਭਵਿੱਖ ‘ਚ ਵੀ ਜੇ ਕੋਈ ਵਾਤਾਵਰਣ ਵਿਗਾੜਨ ਦੀ ਕੋਸ਼ਿਸ਼ ਕਰੇਗਾ, ਬਖਸ਼ਿਆ ਨਹੀਂ ਜਾਵੇਗਾ.. pic.twitter.com/0ZYruxvYcu
Farmers in Ferozepur have been making the demand to close this alcohol plant for a long time. Accordingly, it was shut down by the Aam Aadmi Party leader.
It is notable that Punjab’s chief minister Bhagwant Mann has been in trouble due to his alcoholism in the past. He was caught allegedly drunk a number of times. A report said that Mann was deplaned from a flight to India in Germany as he was drunk. Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) refuted the claims, saying Mann was not deplaned for being drunk. Earlier, AAP had claimed he was deplaned due to bad health.
In January 2019, Bhagwant Mann publicly promised that he would not drink anymore. AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal had called it a ‘great sacrifice for the people’ at that time.
Shiromani Akali Dal leader Harsimrat Kaur Badal even raised the issue of Mann’s drinking habit in the parliament, something he has allegedly refused to let go of even after becoming the Chief Minister of Punjab. After becoming CM, reports have suggested he visited places, including Gurudwaras, while being in an inebriated state.
