Madhya Pradesh Home Minister Babulal Gaur
Madhya Pradesh Home Minister Babulal Gaur has found himself in the middle of yet another controversy after commenting that drinking liquor is a "fundamental right" and a status symbol as well.
Mr Gaur, 85, had been asked by reporters about his views on the extension of time for liquor sale in Bhopal, which will now be 11.30 pm instead of 10 pm.
The controversy-prone minister, whose remarks have often left his party red-faced, said crime rate does not increase because of the sale of alcohol.
"Alcohol does not increase crime. People lose their consciousness after consuming alcohol and that's how it causes crime," he said. "The person who drinks within control, does not cause crime... one should not overdrink."
Then he added, "It (drinking) is one's fundamental right. Drinking is a social status symbol these days".
Mr Gaur had been at the centre of a controversy last month after regaling party workers with an anecdote about his conversation with a local leader's wife regarding the tying of a dhoti during a trip to Russia.
The woman had asked how a dhoti remained in place without the help of a belt or a zip. In what was apparently intended as a banter, he said he could teach her the art of draping a dhoti, but in private, Mr Gaur had recalled.
Last year, he had drawn criticism after describing rape as a "social crime". "Sometimes it is right and sometimes wrong," he had said. The BJP had distanced itself from his remarks, saying it was his personal view and not the party's.
Before that, during a visit to Chennai, Mr Gaur had also commented that fewer rapes took place in South India since "women in Tamil Nadu dress decently".