Hookah bars: Outfit demands closure, burns effigy of Health Dept

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, February 19

Activists of the Shivsena Samajwadi held a protest outside the Municipal Corporation (MC) office here today against various “shady” hookah bars running in the district under the garb of restaurants.

The activists, under their leader Sunil Kumar, also burnt an effigy of the Health Department for failing to act against the owners of these bars.

The activists alleged that hookah bars being run in the city as restaurants were causing havoc in the district and destroying the lives of many youngsters.

They said in the past some days, young men and women smoking hookah were apprehended from many hookah bars and a large quantity of the intoxicant substances were seized from them.

They said the restaurants got the clean chit at the behest of senior health officials and opened again. The activists demanded that action should be initiated against the people running shady establishments across the district. They demanded that such unruly businesses should be acted against by the administration, failing which the Shivsena Samajwadi would hold a huge agitation in the coming days with the demand to ensure the closure of these shady businesses and bars.

Activists Swarup Solanki, Rajinder Singh, Kiran, Palvinder Kaur, Anand Prakash, Narendra Mintu, Bala, Amarjit Kaur, and Yashpal, among others, were present on the occasion.