SRINAGAR: Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Wednesday said no new liquor vends were being allotted by his government and that only earlier allotted ones were being auctioned.
NO NEW LIQUOR VENDS ARE BEING ADVERTISED OR ALLOTED BY MY GOVERNMENT.
TV channels & news portals should immediately stop peddling this lie. pic.twitter.com/TezlzYvHhU— Office of Chief Minister, J&K (@CM_JnK) March 12, 2025
The chief minister’s remarks came after reports suggested that the government had launched bids for 83 new liquor shops in J&K. “NO NEW LIQUOR VENDS ARE BEING ADVERTISED OR ALLOTTED BY MY GOVERNMENT. TV channels & news portals should immediately stop peddling this lie,” the chief minister said on X.
In a written statement, the CM’s office said that as per the J&K Excise Policy for 2025-26, dated February 15, 305 vends (wine shops) were put to e-auction, and after the culmination of the bidding process, 271 vends were allotted to the successful H1 bidders. The remaining 34 locations are being put up for re-auction through a public notice issued on 7 March.
The bidding process, to be conducted by J&K Bank, will be completed on 17 March for these 34 vends, the statement said.
The government clarified that the number of JKEL-2 vends has remained unchanged at 305 since the financial year 2023-24. Of these, 291 vends are located in Jammu and 14 in Kashmir.
“Therefore, the news being circulated on social media regarding an increase in the number of vends (wine shops) in Jammu & Kashmir is fake and baseless,” the statement added.
