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Goa excise dept dismisses plea against Silly Souls Cafe and Bar
According to the complaint, the alleged fraud was perpetrated by using the influence of Union minister Smriti Irani, whose family members are principal investors in Eightall Foods and Beverages, the company operating the restaurant.
The Goa excise commissioner on Thursday dismissed an application seeking cancellation of the licence to serve alcohol at Silly Souls Cafe and Bar in Assagao, which was at the centre of a political storm earlier this year.
Complainant Aires Rodrigues sought the cancellation alleging that the excise licence was renewed fraudulently in the name of Anthony D’Gama, who is deceased. According to the complaint, the alleged fraud was perpetrated by using the influence of Union minister Smriti Irani, whose family members are principal investors in Eightall Foods and Beverages, the company operating the restaurant.
Also Read: Is Silly Souls’ licence legal? Goa excise commissioner decision on Oct 20
Reviewing Rodrigues’s complaint on Thursday, excise commissioner Narayan Gad said while there were some irregularities in the process by which the licence was issued and renewed, they did not merit full cancellation of the permit.
“I am of the opinion that all the three applications — the original application, the first renewal and the second renewal were made by Dean D’Gama, the respondent herein on behalf of the licensee Anthony D’Gama based on the valid power of attorney. However, Dean D’Gama ought to have produced this power of attorney to the office of excise inspector Bardez at the relevant time and also the officials of the excise station Bardez should have obtained the power of attorney from Dean D’Gama,” Gad noted.
“... Nevertheless this procedural lapse does not warrant cancellation of the excise licence. Some penalty/fine can be imposed for this negligence at an appropriate time,” he added.
“If a liquor licence is either suspended or cancelled on petty issues, it not only hampers the business but also affects the revenue of the state. If a liquor licence holder dies, should the business come to an end? The surviving legal heirs of such deceased licence holders should be provided with the necessary assistance and support, both legal and moral, to continue with the business,” he said.
“Within the framework of law, it can be ensured that the livelihood of the licensee or their survivors is not affected. A running business cannot be allowed to be closed all of a sudden,” he added.
Rodrigues said he would challenge the dismissal before the high court.
“The excise commissioner, in his order, totally overlooked the fact that the excise licence was obtained by submitting false and inadequate documents and by misrepresenting facts while there were also glaring procedural lapses on the part of excise officials. I will challenge before the high court the order passed by the Goa excise commissioner,” he said.
A controversy broke out when Silly Souls was served a show-cause notice on July 21 this year after it was found that its owners renewed the restaurant’s liquor licence using the name of a deceased person. Irani and her 18-year-old daughter found themselves embroiled in the controversy when Congress leaders alleged that the latter ran an “illegal bar”.
The Union minister filed a civil defamation suit against three Congress leaders for linking her daughter’s name to the restaurant. The Delhi high court observed that Irani and her daughter are neither owners of the restaurant in Goa, nor have they ever applied for the licence for food and beverages at the eatery, as alleged.
On June 29, Rodrigues filed a complaint alleging that the excise office in Mapusa illegally renewed the restaurant’s excise licence in the name of Anthony D’Gama.
