The Hindu : Liquor vending provision repeal stayed

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Jul 17, 2002

Southern States

Southern States - Tamil Nadu

Liquor vending provision repeal stayed

By A. Subramani

CHENNAI JULY 16 . The government move to repeal an existing liquor vending provision and thereby terminate the permits of 6,000 licensed retail IMFL shops was stayed for three months by the Madras High Court today.

(The impugned July 8 notifications, issued by the Prohibition and Excise Department, seek to repeal Rule 14 of the Tamil Nadu Liquor (Retail Vending) Rules 1989 governing the renewal of licences. While the second GO enhanced the privilege fee for the shops after reclassifying them, the third order increased the number of IMFL shops from 6,000 to 7,000.)

Justice F.M. Ibrahim Kalifulla, making it clear that the interim relief would be applicable only to the writ petitioners, said: ``the Government can be directed to renew the licences...as an ad hoc measure for three months — between August 1 and October 31, 2002 — with certain conditions, and also by staying the operation of the GOs insofar as they related to the repeal of Rule 14 (a), (b) and (c) alone''.

The judge also laid two conditions:

The petitioners, irrespective of their having made an application earlier or not, should make a fresh application within two days of the date of receipt of a copy of this order.

As for payment of the privilege amount, the petitioners should pay it at the rate fixed under the GOs proportionate for the period of three months. (One-fourth of the privilege fee fixed by the Government.)

On their compliance with these conditions, the Government should issue a temporary ad hoc licence for three months, i.e. August 1 to October 31, 2002.

Posting the batch of petitions to September 2 for final disposal, Mr. Justice Kalifulla ruled that it would be open to the State to stick to its schedule as prescribed in the impugned GOs, and proceed on the basis of the stipulations contained in the orders.

(As per the GOs, the last date for submitting applications for licences is July 18. The date for draw of lot is July 27.)

While very many submissions were vehemently made on the repeal of Rule 14, no serious arguments were addressed on the other changes introduced under the GOs. Therefore, ``the present system of privilege amount for retail vending of IMFL in the block period of three years has been given the go-by and henceforth it will be on the respective year basis'', the judge said.

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