<p>Arvind Kejriwal-led Delhi government on Saturday announced the withdrawal of its eight-month-old new excise policy for the time being and ordered the sale of alcohol only through government-run vends.</p>.<p>With Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, who heads the Excise Ministry, announcing the decision, 468 private liquor shops operating in the capital will be shut from August 1 as the term of their licences and that of the new excise policy expire on Sunday.</p>.<p>The government move came days after Delhi Lt Governor V K Saxena recommended a CBI into the implementation of the excise policy following allegations of "cartelisation, facilitating monopolies and favouring blacklisted firms" in awarding liquor licences. The AAP government had denied the allegations earlier.</p>.<p>Sisodia told a press conference that the Delhi Chief Secretary has been directed to ensure that liquor is now sold through government shops only and there is no chaos.</p>.<p>Accusing the BJP of "running an illegal liquor business in Gujarat", which it wanted to replicate in Delhi, Sisodia claimed that the saffron party was using agencies like the CBI and ED to threaten liquor licensees, many of whom have now shut shops, and the excise officials who were scared to start open auctions of retail licences.</p>.<p>"They want to create a shortage of liquor so that they can run an illegal liquor trade in Delhi like they are doing in Gujarat. But we will not let this happen," Sisodia said while warning that the capital may see "hooch tragedy" on lines of Gujarat if legal sale of liquor is stopped.</p>.<p>"They (BJP) want to reduce the sale of legal quantities of liquor. Like Gujarat, they want to promote the sale of spurious, off-duty liquor by threatening Delhi's shop-owners, officers," he alleged.</p>.<p>Implemented on 17 November, 2021, the excise policy was extended after April 30 till July 31. Sisodia said under the old excise policy there were many government liquor vends and there used to be "huge corruption" in such stores.</p>.<p>He said corruption ended after licences were issued through open tenders in a transparent manner under the new excise policy. "Under the old regime, the government used to earn a revenue of Rs 6,000 crore, while through the new excise policy the government was set to get Rs 9,500 crore revenue in the entire year," Sisodia said.</p>.<p>Earlier, the Excise Department had cancelled a tender suspecting cartelisation, for the supply of country liquor.</p>.<p>Under the new Excise Policy 2021-22, Delhi was divided into 32 zones with licences issued for retail liquor sale through 849 vends. In May, licensees of nine of the 32 zones had surrendered their licences over issues like financial non-viability and problem in opening vends in non-confirming wards.</p>
<p>Arvind Kejriwal-led Delhi government on Saturday announced the withdrawal of its eight-month-old new excise policy for the time being and ordered the sale of alcohol only through government-run vends.</p>.<p>With Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, who heads the Excise Ministry, announcing the decision, 468 private liquor shops operating in the capital will be shut from August 1 as the term of their licences and that of the new excise policy expire on Sunday.</p>.<p>The government move came days after Delhi Lt Governor V K Saxena recommended a CBI into the implementation of the excise policy following allegations of "cartelisation, facilitating monopolies and favouring blacklisted firms" in awarding liquor licences. The AAP government had denied the allegations earlier.</p>.<p>Sisodia told a press conference that the Delhi Chief Secretary has been directed to ensure that liquor is now sold through government shops only and there is no chaos.</p>.<p>Accusing the BJP of "running an illegal liquor business in Gujarat", which it wanted to replicate in Delhi, Sisodia claimed that the saffron party was using agencies like the CBI and ED to threaten liquor licensees, many of whom have now shut shops, and the excise officials who were scared to start open auctions of retail licences.</p>.<p>"They want to create a shortage of liquor so that they can run an illegal liquor trade in Delhi like they are doing in Gujarat. But we will not let this happen," Sisodia said while warning that the capital may see "hooch tragedy" on lines of Gujarat if legal sale of liquor is stopped.</p>.<p>"They (BJP) want to reduce the sale of legal quantities of liquor. Like Gujarat, they want to promote the sale of spurious, off-duty liquor by threatening Delhi's shop-owners, officers," he alleged.</p>.<p>Implemented on 17 November, 2021, the excise policy was extended after April 30 till July 31. Sisodia said under the old excise policy there were many government liquor vends and there used to be "huge corruption" in such stores.</p>.<p>He said corruption ended after licences were issued through open tenders in a transparent manner under the new excise policy. "Under the old regime, the government used to earn a revenue of Rs 6,000 crore, while through the new excise policy the government was set to get Rs 9,500 crore revenue in the entire year," Sisodia said.</p>.<p>Earlier, the Excise Department had cancelled a tender suspecting cartelisation, for the supply of country liquor.</p>.<p>Under the new Excise Policy 2021-22, Delhi was divided into 32 zones with licences issued for retail liquor sale through 849 vends. In May, licensees of nine of the 32 zones had surrendered their licences over issues like financial non-viability and problem in opening vends in non-confirming wards.</p>
