Booze bar? Its just daru bar bar

You generally don't expect women in Haryana to be interested in the politics of Bihar. But for the last few days, some Haryanvi women have been scanning newspapers for stories on how successful Nitish Kumar has been in implementing prohibition. Many forced the Bansi Lal government to impose prohibition in Haryana exactly 20 years ago only to see the ban being lifted a little more than 20 months later.These women see a little of themselves in Bihari women, but they have serious doubts over any government having the will to sustain it forever.
Lajwanti Devi, 72, is ready to take on anyone found selling liquor in her village even today. No government has opened an authorized liquor vend in her village, Balawas in Hisar, after 1984 when she, along with other villagers, forced the liquor contractor to shut shop. "We did not allow anybody to take a bottle of liquor from the shop. We kept sitting on dharna for six months," Lajwanti recalls. She became a prominent voice against liquor vends in the area. Villagers still display her old photos in which she seems to be holding a mike in her hands.
Lajwanti, who is uneducated, was among those uncounted Haryana women who were behind the prohibition movement in Haryana in 1996. "Yes….yes, we watched it on TV, he (Nitish Kumar) has taken a very good decision," says Lajwanti, but she adds rather dejectedly that it isn't an easy game to play. "Such a move needs courage and public support, which are mostly in short supply," she says.
Echoing similar sentiments, Sunhari Devi, 67, from the neighbouring Kanwari village, recalls how she and other women struggled to turn their agitation into a movement. "Whenever we heard about government bidding for liquor vends, we would rush to the spot to protest," she says. Her husband Attar Singh Krantikari was jailed for 170 days after he started a fast unto death in 1983 demanding lifting of a liquor vend.
Influenced by Arya Samaj, the women joined the campaign in large numbers. They first opposed vends in their villages and later moved to neighbouring villages.
By the early 1990s, the protests turned into a movement. Former Union defence minister Bansi Lal, who set up Haryana Vikas Party after parting ways with the Congress, soon realized the sentiments of the people and promised to being prohibition in the state. He kept his word soon after coming to power in 1996.
But the victory of the women lasted exactly 21 months. Liquor smuggled from Rajasthan and Punjab flowed freely in Haryana. Bootleggers made it available at the doorsteps of most homes. It was alleged that even a section of politicians was actively involved in the smuggling.
"Even those who had nothing to do with liquor before prohibition took to the trade because of the easy money," says Sunhari Devi.
Another anti-liquor movement activist Satyabala Malik, 57, adds, "Looking at what happened in Haryana, it is safe to say that Bihar won't be able to implement it." She led a dharna in front of a liquor vend at her village, Sultanpur in 1994 for seven days, forcing the liquor contractor to shut shop. "They (Bihar government) may carry on with prohibition for a maximum of two to three years."
"The same story will be repeated in Bihar. The mafia will sell liquor after sunset just as in Haryana. It's not possible to implement prohibition overnight," says Malik, who also remained a member of the Haryana Women's Commission from 2000 to 2005.
"Prohibition doesn't work without an aware populace. The liquor mafia only wants money. They don't care about life," she adds. "Bansi Lal imposed prohibition when he came to power in 1996. By the time his government collapsed in 1999, prohibition had also collapsed."
Savitri Devi, 52, was active in her village Kandela in Jind during the anti-liquor movement in early 1990. "Once prohibition was implemented, we did not get the support of either the police or people. Women activists like us were also targeted. The government by itself won't able to implement it in Bihar also," she says.
Boxes
The fear of ghagris
When the anti-liquor movement was at its peak in Haryana in the early 1990s, ghagris (skirts) were hung in front of liquor vends. People were warned that if they dared to buy a bottle, they would be forced to wear the ghagri. At some places, the face of liquor smugglers was blackened by villagers.
Rs 1,300 cr revenue lost
Haryana imposed prohibition on July 1, 1996. The 21-month dry spell had an adverse impact not only on Bansi Lal's political career but also on the state's economy. According to one estimate, the state lost around Rs 1,300 crore revenue in that period.
‘Prohibition benefited liquor mafia, not common man'
"Anti-liquor activists turned police informers after prohibition was imposed but the supply never declined," says Pramod Kumar, director of the Institute for Development and Communication. His organization submitted a report recommending withdrawal of prohibition during the Bansi Lal regime. Kumar says 34,930 FIRs were registered in connection with the illegal liquor trade. The smuggling was prevalent to such an extent that even women and children were attracted to it for the easy money. More than 33,000 people, including women and children, were reportedly engaged as carriers and many were arrested. "Prohibition benefited the liquor mafia, not the common man," says Kumar.