Shimla, July 16 -- After mass resignation of entire gram panchayat of Chebri village in Basantpur of Shimla district following the opening of liquor vend in their panchayat, the government on Tuesday directed the department of excise and taxation to shut the proposed vend. The entire gram panchayat of Chebri village located in Basantpur of Shimla district had resigned in a protest against opening of liquor vend and registration of FIRs against women protesting against it. Locals had demanded immediate revocation of the shop's license and withdrawal of the FIRs. The rural development and panchayati raj minister Anirudh Singh said that he only received informal information last evening. "Chebri panchayat comes under Shimla Rural. I was informed that the entire panchayat body, including the Pradhan and Up-Pradhan, resigned in protest against a liquor vend in their village. I haven't received any formal memorandum, nor has the matter been raised through the Panchayati Raj Office or district administration," he said. Singh, however, confirmed learning that a protest had been ongoing for the past 12 days in the village demanding removal of the liquor shop. While the rural development and panchayati raj department has no administrative control over excise licensing. "As a responsible citizen and minister, I spoke immediately this morning with the excise commissioner. I was unaware of the mass resignation until then, but action has been taken the liquor shop will be shut down," he said. The members, including pradhan (president) Harvinder Singh, vice-president Om Prakash, and ward members, in a letter to the district panchayat officer, had expressed anguish over the state's decision to permit the shop from July 1 despite a unanimous resolution against its opening passed on June 24. "The government did not seek any NOC from the gram sabha for opening the vend. The panchayat residents, especially women, are totally against it. There's no point in holding the posts if we can't do what people want. So, all officer-bearers, including pradhan, vice-pradhan and five ward members, tendered their resignation to the district panchayat officer today," said pradhan Chawinder Pal. Along with the panchayat office-bearers, mahila mandal members had also resigned. "We feel betrayed by the administration and no longer wish to be a part of a governance system that disregards the will of the people," the letter read. The pradhan Chawinder Pal said women had been protesting for close to two weeks against the opening of the liquor vend but their agitation drew no positive response. "We have met the official concerned and even our MLA, but no action has been taken to address our concern," he had said, adding that instead of addressing our genuine concern, FIRs had been filed against the people, including women, for protesting." Deshraj, vice-pradhan, said, "Over 500 migrant workers are employed in our area owing to a big power project. There's a fear among the residents that if the vend opens here the workers will have an easy access to liquor and it could cause problems for our women folk."...