‘Quarter Century Gone In Litigation’: Bombay HC Awards ₹2.5 Lakh To 91-Year-Old After Decades-Long Liquor Licence Dispute

In a long-standing liquor licence dispute that spanned nearly a quarter of a century, the Bombay High Court has awarded Rs 2.5 lakh in costs to a 91-year-old man, Suryakant Khaladkar. The court ruled that Khaladkar had endured repeated rounds of litigation despite earlier court directions, leaving the final years of his life marred by legal battles.

The dispute began in 1973 when the Foreign Liquor-II licence was granted to Balkrishna Wadkar. In 1979, Wadkar entered a partnership with Khaladkar and his father, with the Khaladkars holding a 90 percent share and Wadkar a 10 percent stake. Following Wadkar's death in 1985, both his widow, Shobha, and Khaladkar sought the licence.

The High Court ruled in 2002 that the partnership and licence had ended, directing authorities to treat their claims as new applications under Rule 25 of the Foreign Liquor Rules. However, the matter resurfaced in 2016 after the directions were ignored, and once again in 2022 when the Excise Commissioner overturned a previous decision in favour of Khaladkar.

Despite the rulings, the Excise Minister reinstated the Collector's order in October 2023, prompting Khaladkar to return to the High Court for a third time. Justice Somasekhar Sundaresan observed that granting Shobha preference as the original licensee's heir would contradict earlier judgments and dismissed the argument that the State could "re-grant" the licence.

The court emphasized that the State could still rectify the situation by adopting a policy allowing the licence to be issued to both parties in a 10:90 ratio.