Soon drinking in public and creating nuisance may land you in jail in Assam

Guwahati, February 7: Assam government tabled Assam Excise (Amendments) Bill, 2017 which includes stern provisions like punishments for creating nuisance after drinking or even drinking in public may land you in jail. Under the proposed rules, consuming alcohol at public places will attract a fine of Rs 5,000 and if the offender creates a nuisance, the fine will be up to Rs 10,000 with a jail term of three months.

 

Drinking has always been an upstanding threat to the society and humans. People drinking in public will be punished soon in Assam and also if nuisance is created in public individual may land in jail for at least three months.

On the first day of the budget session the state government tabled the Assam Excise (Amendments) Bill, 2017 to include these strict provisions with the principle objective of curbing drunken hooliganism and brawls. The amendment bill also proposes to make excise offences such as illegal storage of liquor, transport, labeling and sale non-bailable. The state cabinet had approved these amendments last December.

State Excise Minister Parimal Suklabaidya said that that the provisions for punishment for certain offences under the existing Assam Excise Act, 2000 were not adequate. "Illicit liquor and non-duty paid liquor are not only serious threats to human life but do lot of damage to the state exchequer. We need some strict measures to curb such offences," he said.

At present, drinking at public places is a bailable offence and the offender can be released on personal bond without any provision for fine. Also Illegal stocking and transportation of liquor will become non-bailable offences with three years' imprisonment with a fine of Rs 2 lakh fine from current punishment of only six months imprisonment without any fine.