Excise Commissioner Is Duty Bound To Cancel Liquor Licence On The Application Of Legal Heirs Of The Deceased: Bombay High Court

The Bombay High Court, Goa Bench has held that when the legal heirs of the deceased license holder applied for cancellation, the excise commissioner was duty-bound to cancel it.

The bench of Justice Bharat P. Deshpande has observed that the transfer of liquor licenses is at the discretion of the concerned authority.

The petitioner challenged the order passed by the Commissioner of Excise, who canceled the liquor license for the retail sale of IMFL and CL for consumption standing in the name of the late Mr. Joaquim C. Souza Ferrao, resident of Calcondem, Margao-Goa.

The petitioner filed an appeal against the order passed by the Commissioner of Excise; however, the Appellate Authority/Chief Secretary rejected the same appeal.

The petitioner contended that by way of a Deed of Partnership executed on December 21, 2009, between the petitioner and Mr. Joaquim C. Souza Ferrao, the petitioner was permitted to operate a bar and restaurant. As per the deed, the sale of liquor was undertaken on the basis of a license issued in the name of Joaquim C. Souza Ferrao.

The petitioner contended that, in view of the partnership deed, he was entitled to transfer the license in his name. However, the legal heirs of the late Joaquim C. Souza Ferrao applied for cancellation of the license with the Excise Department. Though the petitioner challenged the order in appeal, it was rejected by the Appellate Authority.

The court noted that the Partnership Deed nowhere permits the petitioner to apply for transfer of the liquor license in his name in the event of the death of the license holder. At most, the legal heirs were supposed to join as partners upon the death of the original license holder, and in that case, the license was required to be transferred in the name of the legal heirs.

The court found that the appellate authority, in its order, has rightly observed that the petitioner is trying to mix the issues with regard to the deed of partnership with those of transfer of license under the provisions of the Goa Excise Duty Act.

Case Title: Dattaram Govind Naik Versus State Of Goa

Case No.: Writ Petition No. 245 Of 2020

Date: 15/0§/2023

Counsel For Petitioner: C.A. Coutinho

Counsel For Respondent: S.P. Munj

Click Here To Read The Order