Sudheeran faces flak from Cong MLAs

Thiruvananthapuram: KPCC president VM Sudheeran is learnt to have come under criticism from Congress legislators at an unofficial meeting of the Congress parliamentary party held at Cliff House here on Monday.

According to reports, Congress MLAs sharply criticised Sudheeran for putting the government in a fix with his adamant stand on the liquor issue. 

Rejecting Sudheeran’s stand, the MLAs extended full support to Chief Minister Oommen Chandy’s "practical" changes in liquor policy.

A few days ago the government had made some "practical changes" in the liquor policy considering the plight of job loss of workers in bars and adverse impact on tourism sector, without altering its fundamentals.

Though Chandy maintained that only certain "practical changes" has been brought, Sudheeran termed the changes as "virtual sabotage of the policy which got support from all sections in the society".

On Sunday, Congress spokesman M M Hassan had openly said that Sudheeran's remark had hurt the sentiments of party workers.

It was in August the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) governments had announced a new liquor policy, aimed at bring total prohibition in a phased manner. The policy was widely seen as an outcome of the pressure from Sudheeran.