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28 Mar 2024, Edition - 3180, Thursday

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Tamilnadu News

Kamal Haasan against total prohibition and freebies

Covai Post Network

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Chennai : Actor turned politician Kamal Haasan, who floated his own political party, Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) has come out strongly against the very concept of total prohibition. This could eventually result in greater harm as enforcement will be an issue as also spur illegal trade in liquor.

In his last column in Tamil magazine Ananda Vikatan, the superstar tried to sound different from rest of the political parties by nuancing his stand on prohibition and preferring moderation in the approach to the issue. Most of the other opposition parties were demanding total ban on liquor sales in Tamil Nadu, which he felt might not be the best answer to the problem of alcoholism prevalent in many parts of the state and afflicting the poor in a much more harsh way.

“It is not possible to make an entire society to dislike liquor,” he said adding total prohibition will create a mafia as was seen in the past whenever liquor ban was imposed and wherever it was imposed.

“Liquor is not like gambling that can be stopped immediately,” he said as human body would not agree to stop consuming liquor all of a sudden.

At best liquor consumption can be reduced to begin with and gradually stop alcohol.

“The question is whether the liquor shops should be spread out like this. We have to go in search of a post office but there is no need to search for a TASMAC (Tamil Nadu government liquor outlet). We have to change this situation,” Kamal Haasan said.

What he said was no done was to make election promises to introduce prohibition with an eye on the votes of the women.

Kamal Haasan also took a strong but what can be an unpopular stand on freebies and said he was against the freebie culture. Instead a permanent solution must be thought out on the livelihood question.

What he stood for was good quality education for all. He said his party had many plans to upgrade the quality of education provided in government schools. Kamal Haasan also said that his party opposed the common entrance exam for medical college admissions.

The MNM he said will work for peoples’ welfare and prosperity of Tamil Nadu. There are two — one in Harvard University and the other based locally- who would guide the party in terms of various plans.

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