Actor and political hopeful Rajinikanth took a strong stance against the Tamil Nadu state government for being desperate to resume the services of the TASMAC liquor shops amid pedaling through the rapid spread of the Coronavirus pandemic.

The actor, who remained soft-spoken against the ruling government, has, for this time, issued a stern warning to the ruling leaders if they tend to move forward in opening the liquor shops. By taking to Twitter, Rajinikanth said that the ruling party should forget about coming back to power if it re-opens the state-run liquor shops at this crucial time. 

இந்த நேரத்தில் அரசு டாஸ்மாக் கடைகளை மறுபடி திறந்தால் மீண்டும் ஆட்சிக்கு வரும் கனவை மறந்து விட வேண்டும். தயவுகூர்ந்து #கஜானாவை_நிரப்ப_நல்ல_வழிகளை_பாருங்கள்

— Rajinikanth (@rajinikanth) May 10, 2020

The actor has asked the government to find good and alternative ways to bank revenue, rather from the TASMAC, which has been one of the major revenue channels to the state government. His response has come a day after the Tamil Nadu government has moved its petition of appeal to the Supreme Court to challenge the Madras High Court order which directed the government to shut down the liquor shops until the lockdown is in place.

On Friday, the Madras High Court, after hearing the petitions filed by Kamal Hassan's party Makkal Needhi Maiam, by lawyer Ramkumar Adityan, and former IPS officer Maurya, has ordered the state government to close the liquor shops. By citing that the social distancing norms aren't being followed in the liquor shops, the high court has asked the government to shut down the shops on Saturday. 

The court has permitted the sale of liquor through online to refrain the over-crowding before the shops. However, the state government has, on Saturday, moved its appeal to the Supreme Court by claiming that the high court's order would lead to the grave loss of the state's revenue. According to the reports, the apex court is yet to hear the petition of appeal filed by the Tamil Nadu government.

Rajinikanth's notion has come on Sunday amid the government's attempts to re-open the TASMAC, despite the strong criticism and protests from women and the opposition parties. Last Thursday- May 7, the TASMAC liquor shops across the state apart from Chennai had resumed its operations after remaining shut for six weeks. In the first two days, the state government had seen the revenue of Rs 295 crore. However, it also witnessed how the tipplers took a break from the social distancing norms as thousands had thronged before the liquor shops to buy liquor. It must be recalled that Rajinikanth has, in March, lauded the measures of the Tamil Nadu government to contain the spread of the virus.

Also read: Revenue over welfare: TN Govt moves to the Supreme court to re-open TASMAC shops!