The Kerala High Court on Thursday reserved its judgment on a batch of writ petitions filed by bar hoteliers challenging the government decision to cancel their bar licences.
The verdict was reserved by Justice K. Surendra Mohan after the conclusion of arguments on the petitions. The court took up for hearing the petitions after the Supreme Court ordered the High Court to dispose them before September 30. The apex court had also asked the State government to file an affidavit.
The government contended that it had decided to cancel bar licences of 321 hotels as part of its new liquor policy. The State was trying to protect the interest of the larger public by gradually bringing down the consumption level of liquor, the government argued.
T.N. Prathapan, MLA, who also got impleaded in the case, supported the contentions of the government.The bar hoteliers, however, argued that the government decision was mala fide.
They argued that it was discriminatory since it had allowed the five star and above hotels to have bar facility. Neither had it banned the liquor sale through the outlets run by the Kerala State Beverages Corporation nor did it order shutting down toddy shops, beer and wine parlours.
