Split request: Residents petition for and against Tasmac shop in Kovai

Two groups of residents from a tribal village in Coimbatore turned up at the District Collector office on Monday pitching for and against a Tasmac shop in their neighbourhood.

One section of people insisted for permanent closure of the liquor shop, while another group of residents ironically sought for reopening the shop as they are now forced to travel longer distance to consume liquor.

The shop caught in the middle of controversy and was closed after a woman was knocked a few days ago by three motorcycle borne drunk men at Jambukandi near Anaikatti.

Forty-eight-year-old R Shobana from Kanuvai was returning home after picking her daughter from a private school, when three tipsy men on a motorcycle crashed on her vehicle. While the woman succumbed to injuries, her daughter is still under treatment in a critical condition in hospital.

The incident triggered Shobana’s husband Dr Ramesh, a social activist, to protest by squatting on the Anaikatti-Thadagam Road by laying the body of his wife by his side. He was accompanied by tribes, who sought for closure of the Tasmac shop at Jambukandi. Following this incident, the liquor shop was temporarily closed by the district administration.

Meanwhile, Ramesh and tribal residents gave a petition to Collector demanding permanent closure of the shop as men after consuming liquor drive their vehicles rashly resulting in frequent mishaps on the stretch. The petitioners also claimed that many women in the tribal settlement have become widows at a young age as their husbands passed away due to liquoraddiction.

In a counter petition, another group of residents accompanied by women sought to reopen the closed Tasmac shop.

“In the absence of a Tasmac shop, men were forced to travel over 18 kilometres to consume and buy liquor. Also tipsy men tend to tease women in the bus during travel. Closure of the shop may also lead to illegal sale of liquor at a higher price in Jambukandi area,” said the residents.