The Supreme Court on Friday allowed the Tamil Nadu government to come up with ways to sell liquor, online or through physical outlets, and said it was not for a court to lay down rules for the sale of alcohol.
The medium for sale of alcohol is for the state government to decide, a bench comprising Justice Ashok Bhushan, Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice MR Shah said.
The Supreme Court accepted the plea by the Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (TASMAC) that it cannot be instructed to sell liquor only through online mode and home delivery.
It also agreed that regulations on the sale of alcohol have to be made by the state government. TASMAC agreed to file an affidavit within three weeks regarding the standard operating procedure (SOP) put in place for the sale of liquor in retail shops.
The top court had on May 15 stayed Madras High Court’s order of May 8 to close all state-run liquor shops in Tamil Nadu, with immediate effect, as people, while buying liquor, had blatantly violated social distancing norms during the nationwide lockdown to curb the coronavirus pandemic.
“We can only say, it is for the government to consider online delivery, it is up to the government to decide,” said the court.
{{/usCountry}}“We can only say, it is for the government to consider online delivery, it is up to the government to decide,” said the court.
{{/usCountry}}Senior advocate Mukul Rohtagi, appearing for TASMAC, had said, “How can we trust somebody to carry liquor? There will be riots, someone can adulterate liquor. Tamil Nadu is a large state, unlike Delhi.”
Rohtagi said Madras High Court should not have imposed its own conditions for the sale of liquor, and by doing this, it entered into the state’s domain of policymaking.
He insisted that it was the state’s prerogative to decide how to conduct the sale of liquor.
Lawyer PV Yogeswaran, who represented petitioners who moved the high court, said the sale of liquor was not a fundamental right and precautionary measures must be taken in view of the coronavirus outbreak, and the top court should not intervene in the matter.
TASMAC was directed by the high court to close liquor shops. The state government in its plea said the top court has refused to entertain a writ petition seeking a total ban on the sale of liquor, as the same is a policy matter within the domain of the state.
“The high court misinterpreted the May 8 order passed by a three-member bench of this court, in which the court declined to direct states to close down liquor stores pending the lockdown and left it to each state’s discretion to consider non-direct sale, including online sale/home delivery of liquor,” said the plea filed in the top court.
Liquor sales had resumed at TASMAC outlets in Tamil Nadu, except state capital Chennai, on May 7 after 43 days due to the lockdown since late March.
Heavy rush was seen at most places with people standing in serpentine queues even as the move to allow the sale of liquor came in for flak from opposition parties and others, who raised apprehensions that it would lead to further spread of the coronavirus disease, which had affected more than 6,000 people in the state as of May 8.
Tamil Nadu had decided to open retail liquor outlets, citing relaxation of lockdown norms by the central government.
(With inputs from agency)