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Supreme Court on Friday cleared the confusion around its order which said that the liquor ban along the highways does not apply to licensed establishments falling within the municipal areas and hence said that it would be open to the state governments to whether the principle which has been laid down it in July 11, 2017, should also apply to areas covered by local self-governing bodies and statutory development authorities or is the area developed enough to warrant a ban.
The bench comprising of Chief Justice Dipak Misra, Justice Amitava Roy and Justice DY Chandrachud said they are comfortable in allowing the state governments to make this determination since it is a “question of fact as to whether an area covered by a local self-governing body is proximate to a municipal agglomeration or is sufficiently developed as to warrant the application of the same principle”.
The bench was hearing several miscellaneous applications arising out of its judgement on liquor ban along highways and subsequent orders delivered in the case titles Arrive Safe Society of Chandigarh v The Union Territory of Chandigarh. The court in the above case clarified that the ban does not extend to licensed premises within city limits.
After noting that nearly 1.46 people die in road accidents every year because of consumption of alcohol, the Supreme Court banned liquor sale within 500 metres of highways in December 2016. This was further continued by clarification in July, 2017 with the court saying its ban on liquor does not apply to licensed outlets within municipal limits of a city.
After hearing the parties, the court on Friday said they are of view that the state governments would not be precluded for determining the principle which has laid down by the court in order dated 11 July 2011 in the above case. The court therefore leaves it open to individual licensees to submit their representations to the competent authorities in the state governments if they are so advised upon which appropriate decisions may be taken by the state governments. The courts have issued general direction to obviate both litigations before high courts and repeated recourse to application to this court.
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