Delhi HC issues notice on plea of liquor vendor challenging penalty imposed by Excise Dept
Oct 31, 2022
New Delhi [India], October 31 : The Delhi High Court on Monday issued notice to the Excise Department on a plea moved by a liquor vendor challenging the monetary penalty imposed on it. The petitioner has challenged the penalty imposed by the Excise Department on the ground of gaps in scanning of bottles at the time of sale.
Justice Yashwant Varma issued notice to the Deputy Excise Commissioner on the plea moved by the Beacon Metals (India) Pvt. Ltd. The matter has been listed for April 17, 2023.
The petitioner has challenged the email of July 10, 2021 whereby they were informed that there were total Monthly Stock Reconciliation (MSR) penalty dues to the tune of Rs 39,57,890 for the months October 2020, December 2020 and February 2021. Apart from these dues,
there were some arbitrary incremental dues in the sum of Rs 4,62,392 for the period 2016-2019 also, the petition stated.
The petition moved through advocate Rushab Aggarwal has also challenged the order of September 28, 2021 whereby the petitioner was directed to pay all outstanding dues before
30.09.2021 failing which petitioner's security deposit was to be forfeited.
Petitioner's counsel Rushab Aggarwal argued that there was no provision in the Delhi Excise Act or the rules for levying any monetary penalties by the Excise Department.
The only penal provision in the act is either cancellation or suspension of the license under Section 17, which they have not done. Therefore the penalty is without jurisdiction. He further highlighted that as against a retailer margin of only 5 per cent of MRP per bottle, the penalty proposed was 45 per cent of MRP which is extortionate, he submitted.
The petitioner seeks a direction for quashing the order September 28, 2021 issued by the Department. A direction also been sought directing the department to release the security deposit withheld by it.
The petitioner has also challenged the order August 11, 2020 which stated that the retail licensees who generate MSR Gap of above 50/0 (Le. less than 95 per cent scanning) shall be levied penalty equal to excise duty payable on the total liquor stock in the gap.
