Karimnagar: Cloth merchants, families protest against wine shop in market

Karimnagar: Tension prevailed here on Monday over the establishment of a new liquor shop amidst the local Gandhi Road home to petty traders and cloth stores, as about 40 trades came to present a petition to the Collector.

In the past too, a complaint was made to the Collector and the Excise Department but it was ignored. One Vengal Das Ashok poured petrol over himself in front of the Collectorate and tried to commit suicide. Police intervened and took him into custody.

On this occasion, CPM city secretary Gudikandula Satyam said that 80 families in cloth business have been living in the area for the last 30 years. Most of the workers in the shops are women and most of the women come to buy and if a wine shop and sitting room are set up in such an area they will not be able to continue their business. He said that there is an Anganwadi centre next to the wine shop and there is a Hanuman temple within 100 meters. How can the officials permit wine shop to run in such an area, he questioned.

Businessmen expressed concern that in the past, if they submitted petitions to the Collector, the permission was stopped for a month, but they got the permission from Hyderabad again.

Satyam said that if the owner of the wine shop is adamant and sets up a shop there, the CPM will take up agitations and stand by the women and the shop owners and fight until the permission is revoked.

Local corporator Mendi Srilatha expressed solidarity with the cloth merchants and said that she would stand by the people and fight till the wine shop permission is revoked. Shop owners association president Venkatesham, women association leader Kavitha, CPM city committee members Kompalli Sagar, Pullela Mallaiah, family members of 80 garment traders and others participated in this programme.