THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Few gambits in the state’s electoral history can rival the audacity of the liquor prohibition imposed by Congress Chief Minister A K Antony on April Fools’ Day of 1996.
And, as fate would have it, the plan to neutralise anti-incumbency by winning over women voters came undone at the ballot box. This Wednesday marks 30 years since the ban — and a failed poll strategy.
Antony’s second term as CM was not by design. When K Karunakaran had to resign amid the spy scandal, the party picked Antony for the top post. Karunakaran, who had assumed office on June 24, 1991, stepped down on March 16, 1995. Antony was sworn in on the 22nd with just a year left for the assembly election.
What followed was a turbulent tenure. The Vizhinjam riots, which claimed two lives, and police action in Sivagiri dealt severe blows to the government’s standing. The arrack ban was Antony’s last throw of the dice.
In all fairness, arrack shops which dotted the state were a menace, posing a threat to the state’s social and public health fabric. But many viewed the prohibition announcement, just weeks before the election, as a political gimmick rather than a public health measure.
Nearly 12,500 workers employed across 6,000-odd arrack shops were rendered jobless overnight. To reinforce his prohibitionist credentials, Antony moved on multiple fronts: excise duty on Indian-made foreign liquor was raised to 200%, and the bar-licence fee was hiked from `6 lakh to Rs 10 lakh.
His crusade against liquor drew genuine public approval. The UDF and Antony himself sincerely believed they were riding back to power. But the results proved shocking.
The UDF was routed in the polls held on April 27. The LDF swept to power with 80 seats while the UDF was reduced to 59, with an independent winning the remaining one seat.
However, the LDF lacked the resolve to meaningfully revise the liquor policy inherited from its rivals. Despite its failings, Antony’s reform commanded popular support. That public sentiment restrained not only the LDF government that followed, but every government since.
Job loss for 12,500; steep hike in licence fee
Nearly 12,500 workers across 6,000-odd arrack shops were rendered jobless overnight. Excise duty on Indian-made foreign liquor was raised to 200%, and the bar-licence fee was hiked from Rs 6 lakh to Rs 10 lakh