New excise policy may scrap special zone, crackdown begins
LUCKNOW : The BJP government in UP has ordered a statewide crackdown on liquor shops that have been overcharging people.
The move comes ahead of the unveiling of the much awaited new excise policy in Uttar Pradesh.
The new policy is expected to do away with the ‘special excise zone’ in the Meerut region and rationalise the trade.
The crackdown included shops run by a company owned by the family of a liquor baron.
Uttar Pradesh excise minister Jai Pratap Singh told HT that statewide raids were carried out on the basis of complaints of overcharging. He said such raids would continue.
“Such raids will now be conducted routinely,” the minister said.
He also said the government was planning to set up a mechanism under which complaints against liquor shops could be instantly examined and redressed. The drive was also carried out in the special excise zone liquor baron’s family group presently runs.
The liquor lobby in UP has been against the ‘special excise zone’ that was created under the Bahujan Samaj Party rule and continued under the Samajwadi Party government.
The Yogi Adityanath government’s new policy is expected to be what an official said, “more balanced.”
“At several places, the shops of the group weren’t maintaining proper register and records of sales. FIRs would be registered wherever necessary on all those
who have been found to violate the terms of arrangement under which they were permitted to operate liquor shops,” an excise official said.
He added the government wanted to provide a ‘level playing field’ that isn’t ‘tilted’ against anyone unlike the special excise zone that favoured one.
The state government has already slapped a notice for the recovery of Rs 54 crore on the group for ‘defaulting’ on the terms and conditions under which they were allowed to operate in the special excise zone.
“They were supposed to run shops but we have found that in many cases they were not doing so causing a loss to the state exchequer. The group also owns several countrymade liquor shops. Under the present arrangement, there is a minimum guarantee quota that shop allottees have to necessarily take. This is something that they weren’t doing. Then there are other violations too that the government has taken seriously,” an excise department official said.
“If the government does away with the special excise zone, it would be a welcome thing. But, there are other concerns too over which we will take out a procession in the state capital on Monday to draw the attention of the government,” office bearers of the Lucknow Sharab Association said.
The liquor lobby fears that under the new excise policy, the government will make it mandatory for each allottee to take six shops which it feels will bend it towards the moneyed.
“At least, they should bring it down to three shops. Otherwise, the government’s intention to provide a level playing field will be defeated,” said Kanhailal Maurya of the Sharab Association.