Bombay Prohibition Act, 1949

J.F. Pathan was detained on 12 October 1988 under Section 3(1) of the Gujarat Prevention of Anti‑Social Activities Act, 1985. He had earlier been detained in 1985 under the National Security Act and in 1986 under the same PASA Act, both orders later quashed by the Gujarat High Court. The detaining authority, in forming…

The petitioners, industrial users of ethyl alcohol, challenged state statutes imposing a vend fee and other levies on industrial alcohol, arguing that such taxes were beyond the legislative competence of the states. The Court examined the constitutional distribution of powers, focusing on Entries 84 of List I, 51 and 8…

The Supreme Court of India, in a 9-judge bench reference, addressed the scope of Entry 8 of List II of the Seventh Schedule (intoxicating liquors) and its interplay with Entry 52 of List I (industries controlled by the Union). The case arose from a challenge by the State of Uttar Pradesh against a High Court decision t…

The case arose from the 2009 hooch tragedy in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, where spurious country‑made liquor containing methyl alcohol caused 147 deaths and 205 injuries. Ravindersingh @ Ravi Pavar (appellant) and Jayesh Hiralal Thakker (respondent) were charged under several sections of the IPC and the Bombay Prohibition Act …

The petitioner, Ayub, was detained under Section 3(1) of the Gujarat Prevention of Anti-Social Activities Act, 1985 on grounds that he was a "bootlegger" and a "dangerous person" involved in several offences. The petition challenged the detention, arguing that the detaining authority had not applied its mind and that t…

The appellant, a liquor manufacturer, challenged the State's demand for supervision charges with retrospective effect and interest, arguing that a prior High Court decision had already settled the issue. The High Court dismissed the later writ petition, holding that the demand notices were illegal. The Supreme Court ex…

Gujchem Distillers India Ltd, a manufacturer of industrial alcohol, was required under a licence to pay supervisory charges to a staff appointed by the Gujarat State under Section 58(A) of the Bombay Prohibition Act, 1949. The company challenged the constitutional validity of that provision, arguing that the State had …

The Supreme Court examined challenges to the Maharashtra Prohibition of Obscene Dance Act, 2016 and its Rules, which regulate dance performances in hotels, restaurants and bar rooms. Petitioners argued that provisions defining "obscene dance", licensing restrictions, punitive measures for tips, and various licensing co…

B.P. Patel, elected President of Anand Municipality, was arrested and placed in judicial custody for alleged offences under the IPC, Arms Act and Bombay Police Act. The Director of Municipalities suspended him under Section 40 of the Gujarat Municipalities Act, 1963, which provides for suspension if a municipal officer…

Shroff & Co., a partnership dealing in wines and spirits, imported liquor into Bombay and stored it in a bonded warehouse under the Maharashtra Foreign Liquor (Storage in Bond) Rules. The appellants challenged the inclusion of countervailing duty in the assessable value for octroi, arguing that the duty was not incurre…

Alister Anthony Pareira was convicted for causing the death of seven labourers and grievous injuries to eight others by driving a car rashly and negligently while under the influence of alcohol. The Supreme Court examined whether a person could be tried and convicted under both s.304(Part II) IPC (culpable homicide not…

The appellant, a liquor broker in Gujarat, was arrested for importing foreign liquor from Rajasthan and later detained under the Gujarat Prevention of Anti‑Social Activities Act, 1985, sub‑section 2 of s. 3, to prevent him from acting prejudicial to public order. He challenged the detention on grounds of procedural vio…

The Supreme Court examined whether the Government of Maharashtra could demand additional supervision charges from Deokar's Distillery after the State revised its civil service pay scales with retrospective effect. The licencees had paid supervision fees in advance as required by the Bombay Prohibition Act, 1949 and rel…

The State of Maharashtra raided a brewery and registered offences under the Bombay Prohibition Act in 1985. After a year, five charge‑sheets were filed on 21 November 1986 before the Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM), along with two applications: one seeking condonation of any delay in filing the charge‑sheet and another…

The petitioner was detained under the Gujarat Prevention of Anti‑social Activities Act, 1985 on the grounds that he was a 'bootlegger' and a 'dangerous person' whose activities threatened public order. The detaining authority relied on four liquor‑related cases under the Bombay Prohibition Act and a single criminal cas…

The petitioners challenged the constitutional validity of amendments to the Bombay Prohibition Act, 1949 made by the Gujarat Legislature that required a permit for possession of "rotten gur" in excess of a prescribed limit and regulated its manufacture. They argued that the provisions exceeded the State's legislative c…

Polychem Ltd., a manufacturer of alcoholic beverages, paid supervision charges in advance each quarter as required by Section 58-A of the Bombay Prohibition Act, 1949. After the government raised the wages and dearness allowance of its supervising staff retrospectively, it demanded a differential amount of supervision …

The State of Madhya Pradesh granted a D‑2 licence, in the form of a lease, to Mis. K.C.T. Drinks Ltd for manufacturing Indian Made Foreign Liquor. The licence contained a condition that the licensee pay the full cost of excise supervisory staff posted at its factory. The High Court struck down this levy, relying on the…

Three appellants were arrested in Gujarat and, after a police search, charas was seized from them. They were convicted under Section 20 of the NDPS Act and Sections 65 and 66 of the Bombay Prohibition Act. The appellants argued that the police had not informed them of their right, under Section 50 of the NDPS Act, to b…

The State of Maharashtra issued a demand for a fee under Rule 5(2) of the Bombay Rectified Spirit (Transport in Bond) Rules, 1951 against Nagpur Distillers, which purchases rectified spirit and extra neutral alcohol from other distilleries for manufacturing Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL). The distiller filed a writ …

Abdul Rashid Ibrahim Mansuri, an auto‑rickshaw driver, was arrested after police stopped his vehicle and found four gunny bags containing charas. The police officer who ordered the stop relied on verbal information and neither recorded it in writing nor forwarded it to his superior as required by Section 42(1) of the N…