JC remark on liquor draws flak

Senior Congress leader JC Diwakar Reddy's remarks on consumption of liquor drew criticism from various quarters.Telugu Desam senior leader Galli Muddukrishnama Naidu on Tuesday criticized former minister JC Diwakar Reddy for issuing irresponsible comments on liquor consumption.

Talking to newsmen, Galli Muddukrishnama Naidu and Somireddy Chandrasekhara Reddy said the senior Congress leader was encouraging liquor consumption with such ''irresponsible'' statements.

The former minister said successive governments in several countries failed to ban sale of liquor. The huge bids for liquor in the state is an indicator that illegal trade of liquor is set to increase in the coming days, he added.

Naidu alleged the Rosaiah government, in the name of liquor permits received thousands of crores of rupees from influential persons. He demanded that the Central Bureau of Investigation probe the entire murky issue of liquor auctioning.