Liquor Branding Contest Not Indirect Solicitation Or Surrogate Advertisement: Excise Commissioner Tells Kerala High Court In Plea Against BEVCO

Last week, the Court had ordered an interim stay on the contest announced by BEVCO [Kerala State Beverages (Manufacturing and Marketing) Corporation] and Malabar Distilleries Ltd. inviting suggestions from the public to give a name and logo for a proposed premium brandy product.

M.R. Ajithkumar IPS, Excise Commissioner stated that the offence under Section 55H would not be attracted in the present case since the advertisement is not with respect to any liquor brand, which is existing at present.

He has also stated that Malabar Distilleries, a Public Sector Undertaking under the control of the state government, do not have the licence for manufacturing liquor but is only likely to be licenced subject to statutory approvals.

“The advertisement in question did not advertise any existing liquor brand. It did not mention the name of any liquor. It did not display any bottle, packaging, label, logo or identifiable alcoholic product. It did not invite the public to purchase or consumer liquor. It did not offer liquor for sale. It merely invited suggestions for selection of a name and logo for a proposed product which may be manufactured in future subject to licensing. On a plain reading of the advertisement, there is no solicitation of use and no offering of liquor,” he has stated.

He has also denied the averment that the advertisement amounts to indirect solicitation or surrogate advertisement. The Excise Commissioner has thus sought to dismiss the public interest litigation as devoid of merits.

The case is to be considered by the Court again next month.

Case Title: M.M. Sanjeev Kumar v. State of Kerala and Ors. and connected case

Case No: WP(PIL) 2/ 2026 and WP(PIL) 7/ 2026

Counsel for the petitioners: Radhakrishnan R, Christil Shaji, Anzar Basheer, K S Muralikrishnan Nair, Jayachandran R, Sailaj Ramachandran