Power of the bottle

Liquor bottles can be a potent force during elections. And this was in ample evidence in the battle for Bilaspur in Chhattisgarh.

There, the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) flamboyant leader Dilip Singh Judeo is locked in a straight contest with Renu Jogi, wife of Congress leader and the state’s first chief minister Ajit Jogi. Both led massive rallies before filing their nomination papers.

But party insiders said lavish amounts were spent on distributing local liquor in rural areas to bring people to Bilaspur town for the rallies. The sources claimed that bottles were distributed mainly to only those who gave the assurance of bringing five more people with them.