CPI(M), Congress at loggerheads over ‘expedited issuance’ of liquor licenses in Kerala

Political wrangling escalated on Wednesday over whether the previous exemption from the Left Democratic Front (LDF) or the current Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) gave excise department officials “free rein” to grant bar licenses without ministerial sanction. Chief Minister VD Satheesan and Excise Minister M Liju have accused the LDF government of “liberal awarding” of bar licenses by delegating powers to junior excise officials to presumably avoid political accountability.

The excise department’s “hasty” reclassification of wine bars and pubs as bars and the almost “instant” approval to open bars at the Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL) caught the government off guard. Mr Satheesan and Mr Liju accused Excise Department officials of jumping the gun and blindsided the government when it formulated Kerala’s liquor policy for the financial year 2026-27 for announcement on 30 November.

They said Excise Department officials used the LDF government’s controversial decision to empower Deputy Excise Commissioners to grant bar licenses as a foil to grant liquor licenses behind the UDF government’s back.

The ruling alliance also appeared irritated that the fast-track issuance of bar licenses could anger the UDF’s prohibitionist base, which includes powerful Christian and Muslim social organisations. Besides, the UDF government was also concerned that the issuance of bar licenses appears to be highly selective, with 29 applications pending in the excise department.

However, the UDF government’s attempt to accuse the previous government of an “embarrassing faux pas” was met with strong opposition from the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI(M)). CPI(M) state secretariat member and former excise minister MB Rajesh accused Mr Satheesan and Mr Lija of “lying” to save face. He said the Oommen Chandy government had opened the door to licensing of airport bars by creating a new category of license (FL-7) in 2011. Moreover, the then UDF government had also empowered Deputy Excise Commissioners to issue such licenses for serving foreign liquor to passengers passing through international and domestic airports.

He said the LDF had not violated or amended the 40-year-old Abkari Rules, which mandated ministerial sanction to issue bar licences. He said the LDF never lost political control over the Excise Department and the administration did not grant any license behind the minister’s back. Mr. Rajesh said that the LDF has made the licensing process available online to ensure transparency. He invited Mr. Lija to discuss the matter.

Published – 05 Nov 2026 0:43 IST