The Uttar Pradesh excise department has launched a drive across the state to check if restaurants and marriage halls were serving liquor to customers without having a regular bar license or an occasional liquor license.
The department would initiate strict action against the restaurant and marriage halls serving liquor to customers without a license, additional chief secretary excise Sanjay R Bhoosreddy and excise commissioner Senthil R Pandian said on Monday.
The excise commissioner also mentioned the Noida restaurant case to make it clear that this was not an empty threat for liquor sellers who are serving liquor in the state without a license. The Flying Dutchman Restaurant owner was booked and the manager was arrested after the seizure of 17 bottles of foreign liquor, including 56 beer cans and bottles from the restaurant.
In a press release issued by the excise department, Pandian informed that 2 persons, including manager Gaurav Pandey and Pranay Manral, were arrested on the spot.
The Phase 3 Gautam Buddha Nagar police also registered cases against 6 others, including Rajendra Singh, Kehar Singh, restaurant owner Yogesh Sharma and Sunil Kumar.
The state government has also made the license mandatory for stocking liquor, above a certain quantity, at home.
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Under the Centre’s new rules, if the party takes place inside the house, then a license fee of Rs.4000 for 6 hours and if it runs in such hotels, then Rs.11000 for every 6 hours will have to be paid as license fee. It was also said that whoever is found violating this rule, necessary action will be taken by registering a case against him.
In March, months after the state cabinet approved the new excise policy, making license mandatory for stocking of liquor at home. A personal home license has been made mandatory for stocking liquor at home, and the annual fee of the license would be Rs 12000 with a security deposit of Rs 51000.