Minister Dharmendra Lodhi Retracts Remarks On Liquor Supply In Bihar; Claims Video Was ‘Fabricated’ After Backlash

Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Culture and Tourism Minister Dharmendra Lodhi retracted his statement within 24 hours on liquor being supplied through phone calls in Bihar. In a video message released on Monday, he claimed that his earlier comments were distorted.

On Sunday, Lodhi had said, “No one can stop people from consuming alcohol. If someone wants to drink, they will find a way. In Bihar and Gujarat, liquor is banned by our governments, but a few leaders who went there for election campaigning told me that liquor is delivered at home on a phone call.”

The minister made the remarks during a live session on a social media platform, which he later deleted. By Monday, he issued a clarification saying, “I was live with my constituency people, discussing total prohibition. The video was 45 minutes long, but Congress and other rivals have fabricated a part of it.”

Lodhi said that BJP governments in Bihar and Gujarat have enforced total prohibition, while Congress governments have never imposed such bans.

Leader of Opposition Umang Singhar criticised the minister’s statement and questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi over what he called “the real BJP model of liquor prohibition.”

“During Bihar elections, you spoke of great benefits of the liquor ban and sought votes in its name.“But your own minister in Madhya Pradesh says liquor is delivered to homes by phone in Bihar, and the mafia is openly active,” Singhar said on social media.