The Patna High Court has observed that the Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act, 2016, which was passed with the objective of improving public health, instead, gave rise to unauthorised trade of liquor and other contraband items in the state. The single-judge Bench of Justice Purnendu Singh noted that the legislation found itself on the wrong side of the history for several reasons.

The Judge was scathing in his judgment on the state government officials who he said benefitted from the ban. The Judge mentioned Police and Excise officials, officers of the State Tax department and the Transport department who benefitted from the ban.

Quashing a demotion order issued against a police inspector – Mukesh Kumar Paswan – on the ground that he was negligent in implementing the prohibition law, the Bench noted that the police were working in tandem with liquor smugglers and the poor were bearing the brunt of the law.

The writ petition was filed by Mukesh Kumar Paswan, the station house officer (SHO) at Patna Bypass police station, who was suspended after Excise department officials found foreign-made liquor in his possession during a raid. Paswan was demoted in 2020 following a general directive issued by the state government.

The High Court said that a few cases were registered against the kingpins or syndicate operators involved in liquor smuggling, compared to the vast number of cases against the poor who consumed liquor or fell victim to hooch tragedies. The lives of the majority of the poor section of the state facing the wrath of the Act were daily wagers, who were only earning members of their family, it said.

Liquor-mafia goes scot-free

It further said the Investigating Officer in the case did not offer any documentary evidence to substantiate the allegations made by the prosecution against the accused SHO, adding that the liquor mafia also went scot-free due to want of evidence.

The single-judge Bench annulled the entire departmental proceedings initiated against the petitioner, stating that this form of punishment was predetermined, which reduced the entire departmental proceedings to a formality.

It maybe, mentioned that in April 2016, the Bihar government enacted the law, prohibiting the manufacture, trade, storage, transportation, sale, and consumption of liquor in the state. The law remained on paper and Bihar witnessed a rise in illegal transport of liquor. Worse, it saw several deaths due to consumption of illicit liquor.

“The draconian provisions have become handy for the police, who are in tandem with the smugglers. Innovative ideas to hoodwink law enforcing agencies have evolved to carry and deliver the contraband. Not only the police officials (and) excise officials, but also officers of the state tax department and the transport department love the liquor ban — for them it means big money,” the Single Bench said.

“I find it proper to record here that the Article 47 of the Constitution of India, while (sic) mandating the duty of the state to raise standards of living and to improve the public health at large and as such the state government enacted Bihar Prohibition and Excise Act, 2016 with the said objective, but for several reasons, it finds itself on the wrong side of the history,” it said.