For the second day on Friday, residents of Sellur in Madurai attempted to stop the opening of a liquor shop in their locality. However, the police chased them away and later picked up 20 of the protestors.
A woman wondered how the administration allowed the Tasmac shop in Meenatchipuram to open when it was very close to a containment zone.
“While the police are strict about timings of grocery and vegetable shops, how can they allow large number of people to gather and buy liquor,” a woman asked.
Pointing out that the area witnessed daily skirmishes due to inebriated people, she added that liquor was also leading to lot of problem in many families.
“Though poor people were forced to borrow money to feed their families, there was some peace during the last 43 days. But, now families were facing issues not just due to loss of jobs but also due to alcohol,” she said.
The police said that 20 men, led by Communist Party of India (Marxist) member, Balu, were picked up, while the women who squatted on the road, were chased away.
The women complained that the police used lathis to beat the youth.
Meanwhile, another protest was reported in Thathaneri under Sellur police station limits. Some 15 women forced the TASMAC shop in the area to close down. However, after the intervention of police, the shop was re-opened.