The state government is still undecided on whether or not to ban liquor sale on Id-e-Milad, as it falls on the eve of Christmas.
Drinking of wine is an integral part of Christmas celebrations.
State minority affairs minister Eknath Khadse said that the decision would be taken in a day or two. The AIMIM, Congress and Samajwadi Party have all demanded that Id-e-Milad should be declared as a dry day in respect of Prophet Mohammed Paigambar.
Several Muslim legislators in the state have demanded that this year Id-e-Milad which falls on December 24 should be declared as dry day in Maharashtra. Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Assembly Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil on Friday led a delegation of Muslim legislators, who met the CM seeking a ban on liquor sale on Id. Congress MLA Arif Naseem Khan and Samajwadi Party MLA Abu Azmi were also part of the delegation. Apart from them, other MLAs, including Abdul Sattar, Amin Patel, Shaikh Asif and Aslam Khan were also signatories to the memorandum given to the CM.
AIMIM legislators Waris Pathan and Imtiyaz Jalil have also given a separate memorandum to the CM on the same issue on Friday.
Mr Khadse said that the government would take the final decision only after considering all aspects. “We have received the demand to declare Eid, which is celebrated to commemorate Prophet Mohammad's birthday, only a few days ago. This is the first time that such a demand is being made. On the other hand, we will have to also take into consideration the religious sentiments of Christians. They should not feel that their celebrations are being restricted by the government decision.
Interestingly, while alcoholic beverages are prohibited in Islam, wine is associated closely with Christmas celebrations. “We will take the final decision in a day or two,” Mr Khadse said.
Earlier, there were demands made by few Muslim leaders to ban the liquor sale during the holy month of Ramzan. The demand was made after the ban on meat sale for four days during the Jain festival Payushan became a major political controversy.
AIMIM MLA Waris Pathan said, “During Paryushan, meat sale was banned for four days. We have demanded ban on liquor sale only for a day. The government should declare Id as dry day to respect religious sentiments of Muslims.”
