Forced temperance is no solution for alcoholism, the Supreme Court has observed in a judgment, while pointing to the consistent failure of Gujarat, a ‘dry State’ with a strict prohibition policy, in preventing hooch tragedies and the deaths of hundreds of people.
The court was hearing a challenge to Rules 18A and 18B of the Maharashtra Poisons Rules, which restrict the purchase of methanol, and mandate the addition of bitterant and colourant to methanol before sale to a non-drug manufacturer. It was later found that they had consumed methanol, which was no less than poison. The court found the Rules unconstitutional and arbitrary. They imposed a heavy financial burden on industries, and did not address the core problems that lead to hooch tragedies, including pilferage, diversion, and institutional corruption. The court noted how many municipal school premises, which are open lands, are often used as storage grounds for illegal liquor. It also recommended governments monitor industrial units that manufacture chemical solvents and sell them illegally to liquor makers.
The Rules had come into force in the aftermath of the deaths of 93 out of a total of 250 persons who consumed spurious liquor purchased at Chhaya Bar in Mumbai in 1991.
A total ban on alcohol only succeeds in sending the liquor trade underground, increasing the prevalence of unregulated, lethal brews, the court said. The court listed five “evils” associated with prohibition — loss of revenue on taxes; expenditure on implementation and good money spent; corruption in police and excise; illegal distilling; and the resultant drug menace. Further, the transport of methanol must be undertaken in dedicated tankers or containers to eliminate the possibility of pilferage or substitution, the apex court said.
