On Tuesday after his statements the previous night were misconstrued, Maharashtra Health Minister Rajesh Tope said that no final decision was taken about reopening liquor shops during the lockdown. He clarified that liquor shops will be allowed to operate only if social distancing measures were followed. "Strict guidelines should be in place before the final decision is taken," he said.

Tope's cryptic response to an online question on Monday night, "If social distancing is properly maintained, there should not be any ban on liquor shops," was promptly interpreted as the state government's preparedness to operate liquor shops which were shut because they don't fall under essential commodities as defined by the Disaster Management Act.