First of all, I would like to point out that the liquor used by Adibasis is of a different kind. It is prepared out of a tree and is named as “Salab Drink”. It relaxes them a little but does not produce intoxication. In the words of Keshab Chandra Sen the two great gifts of the Britishers to India are on the one hand, the Bible and on the other hand the bottle. The country lost its all. ShriKeshab Chandra Sen said that Bible was really such a great book that had not the Britishers brought the bottle with them, this country as a whole would have put faith in the Bible. I speak from my experience when I say that wine produce very harmful consequences in our country. Formerly in the town where I have been living for the last 32 years, no one was given to the drink habit. But since the Government started liquor shops all persons began to drink. My grand-children talk now of other people drinking and I am afraid that they may also take to drinking. As there is now a new order of things as we have attained independence and as it was the wish of Mahatma Gandhi that the word Prohibition should be inscribed in every public place, therefore, I desire Prohibition to be enforced. Is it now wise on Sri Jaipal Singh’s part to talk of religious freedom in this context? We had the religious freedom of Sati in our country. Where is it now? Most of such other religious freedoms were abolished according to the conditions of the age. Human sacrifice was permissible amongst the aboriginals, but today that evil custom disappeared under the stress of changed circumstances. Now the Government does not permit human sacrifice. I am talking of aboriginal area. I toured along with ShriThakkar Baba for about three or four months. In Orissa I toured alone. I found a new feeling amongst the aboriginals of that area. They have got a feeling that one who teaches should not take to drinking and one who goes to school should not also drink. Reading and drinking should never be combined. One who reads does not drink.
