Delhi HC asks authorities to examine feasibility of opening bars till 3am

NEW DELHI:  The Delhi High Court told the AAP government to consult the Delhi Police on keeping bars open till 3 am, as offering alcohol to the general public is a matter of concern for public safety and maintaining law and order.

A bench of Justice Yashwant Varma directed the government’s excise department and the Delhi Police Commissioner to form a consultative group to examine the feasibility of keeping bars open till 3 am.
The court was of the view that though the Excise Act and 2010 Rules empowered to prescribe the operational timing of liquor vends, the same had to be interpreted in light of the powers of the Delhi Police to control and regulate the functioning of eating houses and places of public entertainment.

The order noted that bars or places where alcohol is served “would clearly fall within the ambit” of the Delhi Police Act. “Since the operation of these outlets would have issues such as security of the public, maintenance of law and order, it would not only have been expedient but the law itself would mandate a consultative deliberation between the authorities of the Excise Department and the Delhi Police before directives such as those incorporated in Paragraph 5.1(ii) are framed,” the court noted. 

The court, however, observed that it didn’t intend to stand in the way of the Delhi government’s Excise Department, which had come up with the policy allowing hotels, restaurants and clubs to serve alcohol till 3 am. The petitioner association contended that any interference with its operational hours as allowed by the excise authorities was in violation of excise policy and its fundamental rights concerning the freedom to trade.