Sale, consumption of liquor banned for election

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Kathmandu, Nov. 9: The sale and consumption of liquor products are being banned by the District Administration Offices across the country for security reasons during the upcoming general and provincial elections on November 20.

According to Section 6(Q) of Election Security (Management) Directive, 2078, chief of respective District Administration Office (DAO) should prohibit the sale and consumption of alcohol 48 hours before the election date until the final results arrive.

However, the prohibition has already come into effect in several districts while others are preparing to enforce it at the earliest.“We had sent a circular to all the DAOs on September 15 to restrict alcohol in the respective district as soon as possible after coordination with stakeholders,” said Fanindra Mani Pokharel, spokesperson for the Ministry of Home Affairs (MoHA).

Pokharel, who is also a government joint secretary, informed that the early restriction was suggested to ensure safer environment for the elections.

In Doti district, the sale and consumption of alcohol products have already been banned since November 5. Issuing a notice on November 4, the district’s DAO informed total restriction in transportation, sales and consumption of alcohol. A meeting chaired by Chief District Officer of Doti Kalpana Shrestha decided to continue the restriction until the arrival of election results within the district.

Similarly, the prohibition has also started in Bajura district since November 7. Issuing a notice on Sunday, Bajura DAO informed that the restriction was implemented to ensure safe and transparent elections.

“Once the election results for the district’s constituencies are made public, the sale and consumption of alcohol will be allowed,” said Prakash Chandra Adhikari, CDO of Bajura.

According to our Bajura correspondent, three of the nine local levels in Bajura – Budhiganga, Triveni and Khaptad Chhededaha – have prohibited alcohol for the past five years.

Likewise, our Siraha district correspondent informed that the DAO has also prohibited alcohol sale and consumption in the district from November 6. According to Siraha’s Assistant CDO Ananda Poudel, the decision has been made after a meeting of the district’s security committee. Meanwhile, businesses have expressed reservations towards the decision. 

“The businesses across Siraha have already been suffering due to the high interest rate of banks. Making matters worse is the ban on the sale of liquor a fortnight before the elections. The ban will continue until further notice, since it will take days for final results of the elections to come. The decision has disproportionately affected the businesses,” said Pradip Gupta, secretary at FNCCI, Siraha.

In a bid to restrict rampant sale and consumption of alcohol, Kathmandu Police have also intensified their action.

On Monday, District Police Range, Kathmandu (DPRK), and its units destroyed 28,883 litres of home-made liquors and confiscated its raw material from different parts of the metropolis. 

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