Liquor shops to remain shut for 48 hours ahead of LS polls on May 25
Liquor shops will also remain shut on June 4, when counting for the general elections is scheduled. The district administration has so far seized illegal liquor worth ₹61 lakhs in the run-up to the polls
Gurugram: The Gurugram district administration on Sunday issued directions that all liquor shops will remain closed for 48 hours ahead of the Lok Sabha election on May 25, when Gurugram goes to polls.
Liquor shops will also remain shut on June 4, when counting for the general elections is scheduled. The district administration has so far seized illegal liquor worth ₹61 lakhs in the run-up to the polls, officials aware of the matter said.
According to the directions issued by deputy commissioner Nishant Yadav on Sunday, liquor shops in Gurugram district shall remain closed from 6 pm on May 23 to 6 pm on May 25. The liquor shops will also remain shut on June 4, when the counting of votes takes place, he said.
A statement issued by the district administration said that as per the powers conferred under Section 54 of the Punjab Excise Act, 1914, the district magistrate has directed the Deputy Excise and Taxation Commissioner (Excise), Gurugram to ensure compliance with the above orders. “Directions have been issued to keep liquor shops closed to ensure peaceful conduct of polls,” Yadav, said in a statement.
Gurugram will go to polls on May 25 in the sixth phase of the general elections and according to the latest electoral data, 25,73,411 voters are eligible to cast their votes this time round. The largest number of voters are from the Badshahpur assembly constituency, where nearly 4,97,044 people are expected to cast their votes.
The Gurugram district administration also said that in order to curb the flow of liquor in violation of the model code of conduct, it has seized 20,104 litres of illegal liquor so far, valued at approximately ₹61.16 lakh. Five flying squad teams in each of the nine assembly constituencies are working with the police to carry out continuous checking campaigns, it added.
Sharing information in this connection, deputy excise and taxation commissioner DETC (excise), Amit Bhatia, said in a statement that in view of the Lok Sabha elections flying squad teams and the police are carrying out sudden checks at checkpoints on the roads leading in and out of the city and district to seize unaccounted for cash, illegal liquor, and other items.
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