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| June 18, 2003 | Wednesday | Rabi-us-Sani 17, 1424 |
Cancellation of liquor licences upheld
PESHAWAR, June 17: The Peshawar High Court on Tuesday declared the cancellation of liquor licences of two outlets by the provincial government legal and in accordance with a judgment of the Supreme Court’s Shariat appellate bench.
A high court bench comprising Justice Nasirul Mulk and Justice Shehzad Akber Khan dismissed a writ petition filed by the Greens Hotel, one of the two officially sanctioned liquor outlets, challenging the cancellation of its licence by the provincial excise and taxation department.
The bench ruled that liquor could not be sold or purchased by a Muslim or a firm owned by a Muslim. It observed that the judgment of the Shariat appellate bench was binding on the high court under the Constitution.
The NWFP government had submitted that the step taken by the provincial government was in line with the judgment of the Supreme Court bench delivered on Jan 11, 1988, whereby it was ruled that liquor could not be sold or purchased by a Muslim or a firm or organization owned by a Muslim.
The government had refuted the claim of the petitioner that its licence was cancelled on verbal instructions of the chief minister. It stated that the chief minister had issued written directives on May 13 to the excise secretary, asking him to forthwith cancel licences given to Muslims or firms owned by them.
Advocate Qazi Mohammad Anwer appeared for the petitioner and NWFP Advocate-General Barrister Jehanzeb Raheem represented the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal government.
The bench inquired from Mr Anwer about the judgment of the Shariat appellate bench. He replied that the licence was issued to an institution and not an individual. The bench observed that under the said judgment it could not be issued even to a company owned by a Muslim.
When Mr Anwer argued that after the judgment the licence of the petitioner was renewed on various occasions in 1997, 1999 and 2002, the bench observed that the then governments had violated the verdict.
The petitioner claimed that from 1997 till May 1, 2003, it had paid excise duty on sale of liquor to the tune of Rs27.25 million to the provincial government.
It added that on verbal directives of the provincial government the excise and taxation officer (ETO) No.II, Peshawar, on May 13 sealed the stock of liquor comprising 542 gallons of whisky and brandy and 1,985 bottles of beer.
The petitioner apprehended wastage of the stock worth Rs20 million. The petitioner claimed that no written order had been issued for the cancellation of liquor permits. It added that there was no ban on the consumption of liquor by non-Muslims under the Constitution and the Prohibition (Enforcement of Hadd) Order, 1979.
The respondents were: the NWFP government through the chief secretary, the excise and taxation secretary and director-general, the ETO No.II and the assistant ETO, Peshawar.
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