Wine makers in Maharashtra to move court to challenge excise dues

According to a report in The Financial Express, wine manufacturers in Maharashtra have come together to move the court in order to challenge a State Excise Department notice demanding payment of the entire dues of excise duty which had been waived off for 10 years since 2001 as per a Government policy.

Three wine producers, Chateau d'Ori, Vallée de Vin and Mercury Winery,have received demand notices. They along with other members of the All India Wine Producers Association, will be filing a plea in the Aurangabad bench of the Mumbai High Court asking the court to stay the demand notices issued and to allow all Maharashtra wine manufacturers to present their case.

The Maharashtra Government had announced the policy in 2001 with excise holiday for 10 years to promote wine cultivation, which would prove to be beneficial to farmers. However, following a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) in the Nagpur court challenging the decision in September, the court had asked the State Exercise Department to collect the excise duty dues since 2001 from the wine producers of the state.