The Delhi High Court recently dismissed an appeal by Pernod Ricard, a prominent French wine and spirits corporation, against the denial of its application for a wholesale liquor license by the Delhi government. The decision was delivered by Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav, although the detailed judgment is yet to be released.
The denial of the license was rooted in an ongoing money laundering investigation being conducted by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), in which Pernod Ricard is implicated. The case is part of the broader Delhi excise policy case.
Pernod Ricard’s legal challenge was directed against a decision made on February 17 by the Financial Commissioner, which supported an earlier ruling by the Excise Commissioner. This ruling refused the company’s L-1 wholesale liquor license applications, citing Section 13(1)(c) of the Delhi Excise Act, 2009. The section pertains to disqualifications based on criminal backgrounds.
The corporation argued that the authorities misinterpreted the term ‘criminal background’ by equating it with ‘pending prosecution,’ despite the absence of any conviction against the company. Pernod Ricard contended that Section 13 disqualifies only those applicants who have been convicted of a crime, and that the Financial Commissioner had overstepped by effectively adding ‘pending prosecution’ to the eligibility criteria.
Representing Pernod Ricard were Senior Advocates Mukul Rohatgi and Jayant Mehta, along with a team of advocates including Ninad Laud, Raj Kamal, Karan Khanuja, Zubin Dash, Harneet Singh, Kunal Khanuja, Ishani Shekhar, Manish Kr Sharma, Somil Jain, and Dhruv Raman Singh.
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On behalf of the Delhi government, the case was argued by Standing Counsel (Civil) Sameer Vashisht, with Panel Counsel Avni Singh and advocates Harshita Nathrani, Vaibhav Sharma, and Aryaman Vachche.
