Chikkaballapur BJP MP K Sudhakar Hosts Event with Free Alcohol Distribution; People Queue Up

People in the Nelamangala region of Karnatak had reportedly queued up to receive their bottle of alcohol at the party organised by Chikkaballapur BJP MP K Sudhakar in celebration of his Lok Sabha win from the constituency. The incident has sparked a significant controversy as the public celebration that was hosted to honor Chikkaballapur BJP MP K Sudhakar’s first Lok Sabha election victory, featured the distribution of alcohol. Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar has demanded an explanation from BJP chief J P Nadda regarding the incident.

Bengaluru Rural SP CK Baba had said, “The excise department gave permission and the police were instructed to take care of the arrangements. There is no fault of the police department in this, it is the responsibility of the excise department for providing the permission.”

The party, allegedly organized by Sudhakar, a former health minister, took place in Chikkaballapur on Sunday. Videos quickly spread online, showing people lining up to receive alcohol from the event organizers, who had transported the liquor to the venue.

Jagadeesh Choudary, the BJP president for Nelamangala taluk, confirmed that distributing alcohol was part of the event’s plan.“I was told to get the permission for the event and we had got a licence from the excise department to distribute alcohol among 500-5,000 people,” Choudary told Indian Express.

The event attracted over 4,000 attendees, including numerous BJP workers. However, police sources revealed that C K Baba, Superintendent of Police for Bengaluru Rural, had advised the organizers not to serve alcohol and had also recommended to excise department officials not to grant the license, as it could reflect poorly on them.

Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar addressed the issue on Monday, stating,“Liquor has been distributed to BJP party workers at a public event in Nelamangala. To register a case in this regard is another matter, but before that BJP national president J P Nadda must answer how his party allowed its MP to distribute liquor to party workers in a public event.”

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Shivakumar further criticized the BJP, saying, “Rather than the local BJP leaders, it is important that national leaders of BJP tell people how the BJP is upholding the culture of land by distributing liquor in public meetings.”

Adding to the criticism, Health and Family Welfare Minister Dinesh Gundurao posted on X (formerly Twitter), “Saying one thing, doing another, how to believe them (BJP)… BJP leaders are busy distributing liquor while the state is facing dengue. Where are the BJP leaders who questioned venturing into swimming when I visited Mangaluru? Is this (distribution of liquor) your culture?”

Despite losing the 2023 Assembly election to Pradeep Eshwar in a significant upset, Sudhakar recently defeated Congress candidate M S Raksha Ramaiah by a margin of over 1.5 lakh votes in the Lok Sabha elections.

In response to the controversy, Sudhakar told Indian Express, “I was invited to the felicitation programme organised by our local leaders and karyakartas (workers) in Nelamangala. I was not aware that liquor was being distributed. In fact, I came to know about it only through the media. In my 20 years of political career I have never indulged in such politics. Even if our karyakartas have done it, it’s wrong.”