IMPORTANT POINT
The statutory distance for liquor license compliance must be measured from actual public access points, not hypothetical routes.

JUDGMENT :

MOHAMMED NIAS C.P., J.

The petitioner is the licensee of Hotel Gayathri Inn, holding an FL-3 Licence No. P-28/2024-25, and has been conducting the bar licence from the year 2009 onwards under Rule 13(3) of the Foreign Liquor Rules as it satisfied the prescribed distance norms—specifically, more than 200 metres from any objectionable institution—as the then existing gate was 235 metres away from the Salvation Army Church and 254 metres from a nearby mosque.

2. Subsequently, a zebra crossing was constructed on the National Highway (NH-213) adjacent to the hotel premises. In view of the changed physical access scenario and to enable direct entry from the highway in accordance with traffic safety norms, the petitioner submitted a request on 18.09.2022 to the 1^st respondent for permission to fix a new gate aligned with the zebra crossing. Measurements taken from the new proposed gate to the gate of the Salvation Army Church, taking into account the zebra crossing and footpath as per established guidelines, indicate a distance of 210.1 metres, clearly above the statutory 200-meter threshold.

3. Reports submitted by the lower authorities confirmed that the proposed gate, when measured through the zebra crossing route, satisfies the minimum distance requirement under Rule 13(3). Notwithstanding this, the 1^st respondent, the Excise Commissioner, rejected the application by Ext.P1 order dated 31.03.2024, which was confirmed in revision by the 4^th respondent, which are challenged in this writ petition.

4. The petitioner relies on the decision of this Court in State of Kerala v. Vijayakumar [2009 (1) KLT 578], which was affirmed by the Hon’ble Supreme Court in SLP(C) No. 12363/2009 dated 06.07.2009, and on the Division Bench judgment in State of Kerala v. Babu John [2012 (4) KHC 735], to contend that the statutory distance under Rule 13(3) must be from gate to gate, along the footpath and through the zebra crossing, in conformity with the Traffic Rules. It is also submitted that with the amendment to the 3^rd proviso to Rule 13(3), the distance requirement for 3-star hotels remains 200 metres, whereas for 4-star and above establishments, the limit has been reduced to 50 metres. Since the proposed gate satisfies the 200-meter requirement when measured through the zebra crossing, there is no justification for denying approval.

5. In the counter affidavit filed by the 2^nd respondent, Deputy Commissioner of Excise, Palakkad, it is contended that the writ petition is devoid of merit and liable to be dismissed. The petitioner, though a valid licensee of the FL-3 licence for the year 2024–25, is attempting to circumvent the express provisions of the Foreign Liquor Rules by seeking sanction for a new gate in violation of the distance requirements stipulated under Rule 13(3). It is contended that the licence was originally granted in 2009 on the specific finding that no objectionable institution existed within 200 metres of the gate then situated on the south-east end of the premises. At that time, the nearest objectionable institution, the Salvation Army Church, was situated 235 metres away, satisfying the mandatory distance norms under Rule 13(3).

6. The grievance now raised by the petitioner pertains not to the original grant of licence, but to a subsequent request to shift the location of the hotel gate to the north-east end of the premises, facing the National Highway. While the petitioner seeks to justify this change by measuring distance via a newly constructed zebra crossing, the respondents contend that such an approach is contrary to both the spirit and letter of the statutory scheme.

7. On receipt of the petitioner’s application, the Circle Inspector of Excise, Mannarkkad, conducted a site inspection and submitted a report specifically noting that the proposed new gate is approximately 66 metres from the zebra crossing and 81.10 metres from the gate of the Salvation Army Church, if the crossing is used for measurement. However, it