God’s Own Country’s doddering progress to total liquor ban got some crucial judicial support on Thursday with the Kerala High Court upholding the Congress-led UDF Government’s liquor policy directing closure of bars at all two-star and three-star hotels. However, the court permitted four-star and heritage hotels to run bars though the Government decision was to ban bars in all hotels below five-star classification.
Rejecting the plea of owners of two-star and three-star hotel bars, the single-judge Bench of Justice K Surendra Mohan upheld the Government’s order to close them down as part of the new liquor policy. The judge also rejected a special leave petition filed by the Bar Hotel Owners’ Association seeking two weeks’ time for closing down the bars in order to file appeal.
As per the court order, the State would have only 62 functioning bars — at 33 four-star, 21 five-star and eight heritage hotels — from now. All other bars, which were in operation, were to be closed immediately as the judge rejected the special leave petition of the bar owners seeking two weeks’ time for closure.
Settling as many as 82 petitions submitted by bar owners, the High Court permitted operation of bars at four-star hotels by pointing out that denying them permission while five-star bars were in operation would mean discrimination as there was no significant difference in the classification of four-star and five-star hotels and for other reasons.
The Government had, as per the new liquor policy approved on August 22, ordered closure of all bars except those at five-star hotels. It had refused to renew the licences of 418 bars from April 1 last for lack of required facilities.The remaining 291 bars were served notices towards the end of August ordering their closure by September 12.
The bar owners approached the High Court against the order but it upheld the Government decision, following which they appealed to the Supreme Court which sent the case back to the High Court and allowed the bars to operate till the case was finally settled. The apex court had proposed settlement of the case by September 30 but it got delayed by a full month.
legal experts said the High Court judgement could be interpreted as “partial setback or partial success” for the Government’s liquor policy but what was clear was that many more legal battles could be fought over the liquor policy. The bar owners have already said that they would go in for appeal while the Government is yet to take a decision.
Experts also pointed the confusions in the matter could have been avoided had the Government banned operation of five-star bars also on the basis of the amended hotel classification guidelines of the Union Ministry of Tourism by which permitting bars at four and five-star hotels was a matter of discretion of the State authorities and bars were not mandatory at such hotels.
Chief Minister Oommen Chandy claimed that the judgement was an approval of his Government’s new liquor policy. Excise Minister K Babu said the verdict was not a setback for the Government as some liked to interpret. Bar owners admitted that it was a hugely disappointing verdict for them.Boozers reacted furiously to the verdict mainly by saying that the verdict was illogical and had reserved the enjoyments of life to the elite of the society who alone could approach the bars that would now be in operation. “Be assured that the after-effects of this would be evident in the coming elections,” a boozer in Kochi said.
The Government’s liquor policy had envisaged total liquor ban in ten years. As per this, no bars, except those at five-star hotels, were to be allowed to function. Ten per cent of the total 384 retail liquor outlets would be closed each year leading to eradication of liquor by October 2, 2023. Also, the Government declared Sundays as no-booze days (dry days).