Famed actor Rajinikanth on Sunday slammed the AIADMK government in Tamil Nadu, saying that the government should not open TASMAC (state-run) liquor outlets at this time in view of the coronavirus pandemic, and the current administration 'should forget even the dreams of returning to power.' if establishments selling alcohol are open again
"If the govt is trying to re-open TASMAC (state-run) liquor outlets at this point of time, then they need to forget even the dreams of returning to power. Please explore better ways to fill the state coffers," Rajinikanth tweeted.
On May 4, the Tamil Nadu government announced that TASMAC liquor stores will be opened in non-containment zones from May 7.
After the government gave certain relaxation in lockdown 3.0, people were seen standing in long queues outside liquor shops in several states. These establishments were being opened in neighboring states of Chennai like Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.
The shops were ordered to function between 10 am and 5 pm in Chennai and the government had stated that a distance of 6 feet would be maintained between customers and that additional staff would be deployed at the stores to ensure crowd control.
However, on May 8, the Madras High Court ordered the closure of state-run Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (TASMAC) liquor outlets across Tamil Nadu after violations of social distancing norms amid the COVID-19 lockdown were reported.
On Wednesday, the high court had refused to stay the Tamil Nadu government’s decision to re-open the TASMAC liquor outlets on Thursday, across the state, barring Chennai City Police limits.
Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu has so far reported 6535 cases of COVID-19, with 1824 recoveries, and 44 deaths.
