Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister (CM) Ajit Pawar on Wednesday announced that shops selling Indian-made foreign liquor (IMFL) or country liquor must secure mandatory consent from registered housing societies before operating from commercial spaces within their premises, reported news agency PTI. Pawar, who heads the excise department, has directed that the policy be enforced statewide.

"Permission from registered housing societies will now be compulsory for both categories of liquor shops. The policy must be enforced uniformly throughout Maharashtra," Pawar told the Lower House of the state legislature while responding to a question raised by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator Shankar Jagtap, who represents the Chinchwad Assembly Constituency in Pune District.