(1)

(2)

Mag

S.21 Power to notify exemptions.

(1) ²³[State Government] may, by notification and subject to such conditions as they think fit, exempt any specified liquor or intoxicating drug, or articles containing such liquor or drug from the observance of all or any of the provisions of this Act on the ground that such liquor, drug or article is required for a medicinal, scientific, industrial or such like purpose.

 (2)  When issuing a notification under sub-section (1) ²³[State Government] shall have power to provide that a breach of any of the conditions subject to which the exemption is notified shall be punished with imprisonment which may extend to six months or with fine which may extend to one thousand rupees or with both.

S.22 Authorities to bona fide religious purposes.

²³[State Government] shall make suitable provision for issuing 'Authorities' to persons and institutions for the manufacture, possession or use of such liquor as may be required by them for any bona fide religious purpose in accordance with ancient custom under such terms and conditions and penalties for infringement as may be prescribed.

S.23 Exemption of bona fide travellers and lawful consignment.

Until ²⁴[State Government] by notification otherwise direct, the provisions of this Act shall not be deemed to apply-

 (a)  to liquor in the possession of bona fide travellers for their own personal use while passing through any local area in which this Act is in force; or

 (b)  to lawful consignments of liquor or intoxicating drugs carried through or into any such local area.

S.24 Exemption of members of Armed Forces.

²⁵[(1) The Government may, by notification and subject to such conditions as they think fit, exempt members the armed forces of the Union or of any other armed forces raised or maintained by the Union or attached to or operating with any of its armed forces and the members of the medical or other staff attached to any of the forces aforesaid or any foreign tourist from all or any of the provisions of this Act.

Explanation.- For the purposes of this sub-section 'foreign tourist' means any person who is not a citizen of India and who stays in India for more than twenty four hours and less than six months for any non-immigrant purpose.]
 
(2) When issuing a notification under sub-section (1) 26[State Government] shall have power to provide that a breach of any of the conditions subject to which the exemption is notified shall be punished with imprisonment which may extend to six months or with fine which may extend to one thousand rupees or with

S.25 Licences for bona fide medicinal or other purposes.

²⁶[State Government] or subject to the control of ²⁶[State Government] the Collector, may issue licence to any person or in respect of any institution, whether under the management of Government or not for the manufacture, export, import, transport, sale or possession of any liquor, intoxicating drug or article containing such liquor or drug, on the ground that such liquor, drug or article is required by such person or in respect of such institution for a bona fide medicinal scientific, industrial or such like purpose.

S.26 Excise duty or countervailing duty on liquors and intoxicating drugs.

(1) An excise duty or countervailing duty of such amount as ²⁶[State Government] may, by Notification in the ²⁶[Kerala Government Gazette], specify from time to time shall, if they so direct, be levied on all liquors and intoxicating drugs permitted to be imported, exported, transported, manufactured, issued from any manufactory or institution or sold under the provisions of this Act or any rule, notification, licence or permit issued thereunder.

 (2)  Such duty may be levied in any one or more of the ways prescribed in the rules made under this Act.

 (3)  Nothing in this section shall authorise the levy of any duty which has between goods manufactured or produced in the State and similar goods not so manufactured or produced, discriminates in favour of the former or which in the case of goods manufactured or produced in one locality and similar goods manufactured or produced in another locality.

S.27 Exemption regarding tapping for sweet toddy etc.

(1) ²⁶[State Government] shall have the power to exempt from the operation of all or any of the provisions of this Act, by notification, the tapping of any class of trees for sweet toddy, the possession, transport and sale of such toddy and the manufacture therefrom of jaggery or other non-intoxicating product in any local area.

 (2)  Licences for tapping for sweet toddy etc..- Subject to the control of ²⁷[State Government] the Collector or any officer empowered by him may issue-
 
(a) Licences for the tapping of any trees for sweet toddy for consumption thereof without fermentation or for the manufacture of jaggery therefrom, or

(b) permit for the possession, transport or sale of such toddy.

S.28 Permits and licences.

²⁷[State Government] or any officer empowered by them in this behalf may issue-

 (a)  permits authorising any person to consume and possess for personal consumption any liquor or intoxicating drug;

 (b)  licences to any institution to possess liquor and issue it to such of its members as hold permit under clause (a);

 (c)  licences to any person in charge of a restaurant car attached to a railway train to possess liquor and serve it to bona fide passengers travelling by the train; and

²⁸[(d) licences to any person to possess liquor and issue it to persons or institutions who hold permits or licences under this Act or who have been exempted under this Act from so much of the provisions of clause (a) or (j) of sub-section (1) of Section 8 as relates to the possession consumption or buying of liquor.]

S.29 Form and conditions of licences and permits.

Every licence or permit granted under Section 25, 27 or 28 shall-
 
(1)  be granted on payment of such fees, if any, for such period, and subject to such restrictions and limitations and on such conditions; and

 (2)  be in such form and contain such particulars as ²⁷[State Government] may direct either generally or in any particular case.

S.30 Counterpart agreement to be executed by licensee.

Every person taking out any licence or permit under Section 25, 27 or 28 may be required to execute a counterpart agreement in conformity with the tenor of his licence or permit and to give such security for the performance of his agreement as the Collector may require.

S.31 Power to cancel or suspend licences and permits.

(1) The Collector may cancel or suspend any such licence or permit-

 (a)  if any fee payable by the holder thereof be not duly paid; or

 (b)  in the event of any breach by the holder of such licence or permit or by his servants or by any one acting with his express or implied permission on his behalf, of any of the terms or conditions of such licence or permit; or

 (c)  if the holder thereof is convicted of any offence against this Act, or any cognizable and non-bailable offence; or

 (d)  if the conditions of such licence or permit provide for its cancellation or suspension at will; or

 (e)  if the purpose for which the licence or permit is granted ceases to exist.

²⁹[(2) The Government may cancel or suspend any such licence or permit on any of the aforesaid grounds or on other grounds which may be prescribed.
 
(3)  Before any licence or permit is cancelled or susp

S.32 Penalty for breach of the conditions of licences and permits.

In the event of any breach by the holder of such licence or permit or by his servants or by anyone acting with his express or implied permission on his behalf of any of the terms or conditions of such licence or permit, such holder shall, in addition to the cancellation or suspension of the licence or permit granted to him be punished with imprisonment which may extend to six months or with fine which may extend to one thousand rupees or with both, unless he shall establish that all due and reasonable precautions were exercised by him to prevent any such breach.

Any person who commits any such breach shall, whether he acts with or without the permission of the holder of the licence or permit be liable to the same punishment.

S.33 Appointment of officers and withdrawal of powers.

³⁰[State Government] may, from time to time, by notification-

 (a)  appoint any officer to exercise all the powers of a Commissioner under this Act in all local areas in which it is in force and to have the control of the administration of the provisions of this Act in such areas;

³¹[(b)  appoint any person other than the District Collector to exercise within a district all or any of the powers and to perform all or any of the duties of a Collector under this Act, either concurrently with or to the exclusion of the District Collector, subject to such control as the Government may, from time to time, direct;]

 (c) withdraw from the Commissioner or the Collector any or all of the powers conferred on him by this Act;

 (d)  appoint, paid or honorary officers with such designations, powers, and duties as ³²[State Government] may think fit;

 (e)  order that all or any of the po

S.34 Prohibition Committee.

(1) The Collector or other Prohibition Officer in charge of a District or area may constitute prohibition committees ³¹[in such District or area to assist him in carrying out the objects of this Act.]

 (2)  Every member of a prohibition committee shall observe the working of this Act in his ³¹[District or area] and report thereon and on every matter connected therewith at the prescribed intervals and at any other time he thinks fit, to the Collector or other Prohibition Officer aforesaid.

 (3)  Every member of a prohibition committee shall be entitled to give information at any police station in his ³¹[District or area] regarding the commission or suspected commission of any offence against this Act in such ³¹[District or area] and the officer in charge of such station shall take action on such information and investigate the case in the manner laid down in the Code of Criminal Procedure, for the time bein

S.35 Power of Government to authorise officers to admit persons arrested to bail.

³²[State Government] may, by notification and subject to such conditions as may be prescribed in such notification, empower all or any of the officers or classes of officers or persons mentioned in Section 40 throughout the ³¹[State of Kerala] or in any local area, to admit a person arrested under that section to bail to appear, when summoned or otherwise directed before a Police or Prohibition Officer or Magistrate having jurisdiction to enquire into the offence for which such person has been arrested, and may cancel or vary such notification.

S.36 Issue of search warrants.

If any Collector, Prohibition Officer or Magistrate upon information obtained and after such inquiry as he thinks necessary, has reason to believe that an offence under sub-section (1) of Section 8 has been committed, he may issue a warrant for the search for any liquor, intoxicating drug, materials, still, utensil, implement or apparatus in respect of which the alleged offence has been committed. Any person who has been entrusted with the execution of such a warrant may detain and searched and if he thinks proper, arrest any person found in the place searched, if he has reason to believe such person to be guilty of any offence under this Act;

Provided that every person arrested under this Section shall be admitted to bail by the person arresting if sufficient bail be tendered for his appearance either before a Magistrate or before a Police or Prohibition Officer, as the case may be.

Before issuing such warrant, the Collector, Prohibition Officer or Magistrate shall ex

S.37 Powers of entry and search without warrant.

Whenever a Collector, any Prohibition Officer not below such rank as ³³[State Government] may determine, any Police Officer not below the rank of Inspector, any officer in charge of a Police Station, ³⁴[or any officer authorised by Government] in this behalf has reason to believe that an offence under sub-section (1) of Section 8 has been committed and that the delay occasioned by obtaining a search warrant under Section 36 will prevent the execution thereof, he may after recording his reasons and the grounds of his belief, at any time by day or night enter and search any place and may seize anything found therein which he has reason to believe to be liable to confiscation under this Act; and may detain and search and if he thinks proper, arrest any person found in such place whom he has reason to believe to be guilty of any offence under this Act:

Provided that every person arrested under this section shall be admitted to bail by such officer as aforesa

S.38 35[Powers of entry and inspection.

The Collector, any Prohibition Officer not below such rank as the Government may determine, or any police or any officer authorised by Government in this behalf, may enter and inspect, at any time by day or by night, any place in which it is reasonably suspected-

 (a)  that any toddy is drawn or the manufacture of any other liquor or of any intoxicating drug is carried on, or

 (b)  that any liquor or intoxicating drug is kept for sale or stored, or

 (c)  that an offence under Section 10 has been, or is being committed:

and may examine, test, measure or weigh any material, still, vessel, implement, apparatus, liquor or intoxicating drug found in such place.]

S.39 Power to use force in case of resistance to entry.

If any officer empowered to make an entry under Section 36, 37 or 38 cannot otherwise make such entry it shall be lawful for him to break open any outer or inner door or window and to remove other obstacles to his entry into any such place.

S.40 Arrest of offenders and seizure of contraband liquor and articles without warrant.

Any Prohibition Officer, any Officer of the Police Department and any other person authorised in that behalf -

 (a)  may arrest without warrant any person found committing an offence punishable under sub-section (1) of Section 8 ³⁶[or Section 10,]

 (b)  may seize and detain any liquor, drug or other article which he has reason to believe to be liable to confiscation under this Act; and

 (c)  may search any person, vessel, vehicle, animal, package, receptacle or covering, upon whom or in or upon which, he may have reasonable cause to suspect any such liquor, drug or other article to be, or to be concealed:

Provided that if the officer or person making the arrest under this section be not empowered under Section 35 to admit to bail, the person arrested shall be forthwith forwarded to an officer so empowered if such an officer is known to be within a distance of five miles from the place where such arrest took place.

S.41 Arrest of persons refusing to give name or giving false name.

Any person, who may be accused or reasonable suspected of committing an offence against this Act, and who on demand made by any Prohibition Officer or any officer of the Police Department or by any person authorised in that behalf refuses to give his name and residence or who gives a name or residence which such officer or person has reason to believe to be false, may be arrested by such officer or person in order that his name and residence may be ascertained.

S.42 Searches how to be made.

All searches under the provisions of this Act shall be made in accordance with the provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure for the time being in force.

S.43 Duty of officials of all departments and local authorities to assist.

Officials of all departments of ³⁷[State Government] and of all local authorities shall be legally bound to assist any Prohibition or Police Officer in carrying out the provisions of this Act.

S.44 Offences to be reported, etc.

Every official employed by ³⁷[State Government] or by any local body, other than a Police or Prohibition Officer, shall be bound to give immediate information at the nearest police station or to a Prohibition Officer, of all breaches of any of the provisions of this Act which may come to his knowledge; and all such officials shall be bound to take all reasonable measures in their power to prevent the commission of any such breaches which they may know or have reason to believe are about or likely to be committed.

S.45 Landholders and others to give information.

All landholders, proprietors, tenants, sub-tenants and cultivators who own or hold land or house-property on or in which there shall be any tapping for toddy or manufacture of liquor or intoxicating drugs shall in the absence, of reasonable excuse be bound to give notice of the same to a Magistrate or to a Prohibition Officer or to an officer of the Police of Land Revenue Department immediately the same shall have come to their knowledge.

S.46 Persons arrested how to be dealt with.

(1) When any person is arrested under the provisions of Section 36, 37, 40 or 41, the person arresting him shall, unless bail shall have been accepted under the provisions of Section 36, 37 or 40, forthwith forward him to the nearest police station or to a Prohibition Officer, with a report of the circumstances under which such arrest was made.

Procedure of Police Station Officer.- (2) On any of such person being brought to a Police Station as aforesaid, the officer in charge thereof shall either admit him to bail to appear when summoned, before himself, or before the Prohibition Officer, if any, or any Police Officer within the limits of the jurisdiction of which Prohibition or Police Officer the offence with which he is charged is suspected to have been committed, or in default of bail, shall forward him in custody to such officer.

Procedure of Police or Prohibition Officer empowered to inquire.- (3) On any such person being brought in custody before a Prohibition or

S.47 Persons arrested to be admitted to bail.

It shall be the duty of any officer arresting any person under the powers conferred by Section 36 or 37 and of any officer in charge of a police station or any Police or Prohibition Officer before whom a person arrested is brought or appears under the provisions of Section 46 to release such person on bail if sufficient bail be tendered for his appearance before a Police or Prohibition Officer or before a Magistrate as the case may be.

S.48 Bond of accused and sureties.

(1) Before any person is released on bail, a bond in such sufficient but not excessive sum of money as the officer admitting him to bail thinks proper shall be executed by such person and by one or more sureties, conditioned that such person shall attend in accordance with the terms of the bond and shall continue to attend until otherwise directed by the Police or Prohibition Officer before whom he was bailed to attend, or by the Magistrate, as the case may be:

Provided that the officer admitting any such person to bail may in his discretion dispense with the requirement of a surety or sureties to the bond executed by such person.
 
(2)  ^37A[State Government] shall from time to time determine the form of the bond to be used in any local area.

S.49 Procedure in case of default of person admitted to bail to appear before Prohibition Officer.

When by reason of default of appearance of a person bailed to appear before a Police or Prohibition Officer such Officer is of opinion that proceedings should be had to compel payment of the penalty or penalties mentioned in the bond of the person bailed or of the surety or sureties, he shall forward the bond to the Magistrate having jurisdiction to inquire into or try the offence of which the person bailed was accused, and the Magistrate shall proceed to enforce the payment of the penalty or penalties in the manner provided by the Code of Criminal Procedure, for the time being in force, for the recovery of penalties in the like case of default of appearance by a person bailed to appear before his own Court.

S.49A 38[Obtaining of medical certificates in the case of persons found in a state of intoxication.

(1) Any officer authorised to arrest a person for an offence punishable under clause (j) of sub-section (1) of section 8 in so far as it relates to consumption of liquor or any intoxicating drug, who has reason to believe that any person has consumed liquor or any intoxicating drug, may produce such person for examination, before any medical officer authorised by the Government and request the medical officer to furnish a certificate on his finding whether such person has consumed any liquor or intoxicating drug.
 
(2)  Any such medical officer before whom such person is produced shall be bound to examine such person and furnish to the officer by whom such person has been produced a certificate as to the state of such person, and if any form has been prescribed for the purpose in such form.

 (3)  If the person produced is a woman, the examination shall be carried out by a woman medical officer authorised by the Government.

 (4)  Any

S.50 Power of Police or Prohibition Officer to summon witness.

Any Police or Prohibition Officer holding an inquiry in the manner provided in Section 46 may summon any person to appear before himself to give evidence on such inquiry or to produce any document relevant thereto which may be in his possession or under his control:

Provided that no such officer shall so summon any person to appear before him if the journey to be made for complying with such summons exceeds ten miles by road or fifty miles by rail or such other limits as ³⁹[State Government] may fix.

S.51 Term of Summons.

Every summons issued under Section 50 shall state whether the person summoned is required to give evidence or to produce a document, or both, and shall require him to appear before the said officer at a stated time and place.

S.52 Examination of witnesses.

Persons so summoned shall attend as required and shall answer all questions relating to such inquiry put to them by such officer. Such answer shall be reduced to writing and shall be signed by such officer.

S.53 When attendance of witnesses to be dispensed with and procedure in such cases.

It shall be lawful for a Police or Prohibition Officer, instead of summoning to appear before him any person who, from sickness or other infirmity, may be unable so to do, or whom by reason of rank of sex, it may not be proper to summon, to proceed to the residence of such person and there to require him to answer such questions as he may consider necessary with respect to such inquiry; and such person shall be bound so to answer accordingly, and the provisions of Section 52 shall apply to such answers.

S.54 Power of Police or Prohibition Officer to summon suspected persons.

Any Police or Prohibition Officer may, after recording his reasons in writing, summon any person to appear before him whom he has good reason to suspect of having committed an offence under this Act. On such person appearing before such officer, the procedure prescribed by Sections 46 to 53 shall become applicable.

The Officer may also, if he considers it necessary for the investigation of the case, exercise the powers conferred by Sections 50 to 53 before summoning the person suspected.

S.55 Law relating to criminal Courts as to summoning of witnesses to apply.

The law for the time being in force as to summonses and compelling the attendance of persons summoned in criminal Courts shall so far as the same may be applicable, apply to any summons issued by a Police or Prohibition Officer and to any person summoned by him to appear under the provisions of this Act.

S.56 Report of Police or Prohibition Officer to give jurisdiction to competent Magistrate.

When a Police or Prohibition Officer forwards in custody any person accused of an offence under this Act to the Magistrate having jurisdiction to inquire into or try the case, or admits any such person to bail to appear before such Magistrate, such officer shall also forward to such Magistrate, a report setting forth the name of the accused person and the nature of the offence with which he is charged and the names of the persons who appear to be acquainted with the circumstances of the case, and shall send to such Magistrate any article which it may be necessary to produce before him. Upon receipt of such report the Magistrate shall inquire into such offence and try the person accused thereof in like manner as if complaint had been made before him as prescribed in the Code of Criminal Procedure, for the time being in force.

S.57 Powers of Police and Prohibition Officers to cause attendance of witnesses before Magistrate.

When a Police or Prohibition Officer forwards in custody any person accused of an offense against this Act to the Magistrate having jurisdiction to inquire into or try the case, or admits him to bail to appear before such Magistrate, such officer shall exercise all the powers conferred by the Code of Criminal Procedure, for the time being in force on an officer in charge of a police station in respect to causing the appearance before such Magistrate of such persons acquainted with the facts and circumstances of the case as he considers it necessary that such Magistrate shall examine as witnesses for the prosecution of such case.

S.58 40[Procedure after arrest.

Any person arrested for an offence under this Act shall be informed, as soon may be of the grounds for such arrest and shall be produced before the nearest Magistrate within a period of twenty-four hours of such arrest excluding the time necessary for the journey from the place of arrest to the Court of the Magistrate; and no such person shall be detained in custody beyond the said period without the authority of the Magistrate.]

S.59 Police to take charge of articles seized.

All officers in charge of police stations shall take charge of and keep in safe custody pending the orders of a Magistrate or of a Prohibition Officer all articles seized under this Act which may be delivered to them, and shall allow any Prohibition Officer who may accompany such articles to the police station or who may be deputed for the purpose by his superior officer, to affix his seal to such articles and to make samples of and from them. All samples so taken shall also be sealed with the seal of the officer in charge of the police station.

S.60 Power of District Magistrate to transfer cases.

The District Magistrate shall have power to transfer any case under this Act pending inquiry or trial before any Magistrate or officer in the District to any other Magistrate or officer therein.

S.61 Operation of the Code of Criminal Procedure

⁴¹[Save as expressly provided in this Act, nothing contained therein] shall affect the operation of the Code of Criminal Procedure, for the time being in force.

S.61A 42[Payment of portion of fine to Police and Prohibition Officers.

(1) The Magistrate trying any case under this Act may direct any portion not exceeding one-half of the fine which may be levied under Section 8, or Section 10 or Section 12 or Section 17 to be paid to the Police and prohibition Officers who may have assisted in the detection of the offence. A direction under this section may also be made by any Court of appeal, reference or revision.

 (2)  Where a direction is made under sub-section (1), the Magistrate concerned shall send the amount to be paid under that sub-section to the District Collector, who shall distribute it among such of the Officers aforesaid as may be chosen by him and in such proportion, as he thinks fit.

 (3)  The amount aforesaid shall not be sent to the District Collector until the expiry of three months from the date of the direction under sub-section (1), or if an appeal is presented within that period, until the appeal has been disposed of.]

S.62 Power to make rules.

(1) ⁴³[State Government] may make rules for the purpose of carrying into effect the provisions of this Act.
 
(2)  In particular and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing provision, ⁴³[State Government] may make rules,-

 (a)  for the issue of licences and permits and the enforcement of the conditions thereof.

 (b)  prescribing the powers to be exercised and the duties to be performed by paid and honorary Prohibition Officers in furtherance of the objects of this Act;

 ⁴⁴[(bb)  prescribing the ways in which the duty under Section 26 may be levied.]

 (c)  determining the local jurisdiction of Police and Prohibition Officers in regard to inquiries and the exercise of preventive and investigating powers;

 (d)  authorising any officer or person to exercise any power or perform any duty under this Act;

 (e)  prescribing the p

S.63 Publication of rules and notifications.

All rules made, under this Act shall be published in the ⁴⁶[Kerala Government Gazette] and upon such publication, shall have effect as if enacted in this Act.

S.64 Actions against Government, etc..

No actions shall lie against ⁴⁶[State Government] or against any Prohibition, Police or other officer, for damages in any civil Court for any act bona fide done or ordered to be done in pursuance of this Act.

S.65 Courts to take judicial notice of appointments.

All Courts shall take judicial notice of all notifications and orders conferring powers, imposing duties and making appointments under this Act.

S.1