The Madras High Court on Friday (August 7, 2026) ordered that customers of Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (TASMAC) liquor shops can lodge complaints before the jurisdictional police stations if salespersons demand or collect excess money while selling liquor.

Justice G.K. Ilanthiraiyan passed the order while disposing of a writ petition (criminal) filed by advocate clerk G. Devarajan, accusing around 30 TASMAC liquor shops in and around Chennai of having collected excess money from customers between 2022 and 2026.

The judge had previously passed an interim order in the case directing TASMAC to ensure that its retail shops issue bills for every bottle of liquor sold by them. Accordingly, he was informed on Friday that TASMAC had issued a circular in this regard on Thursday (August 6).

What the circular stated

The circular stated that every bottle of liquor sold by retail liquor shops must be scanned using the hand-held devices provided to them and that customers must certainly be issued with bills using electronic printers. “Under no circumstance should liquor be sold without a bill,” it asserted.

It was also made clear that both shop supervisors as well as salespersons must ensure that customers were issued with bills, and that barricades must be put up at retail liquor shops to ensure that the sale happens in an orderly manner by ensuring a queue system.

TASMAC had also instructed its district managers to ensure strict compliance of the instructions issued in the circular by conducting surprise inspections, besides initiating disciplinary action against shop supervisors and salespersons found guilty of not issuing bills and collecting excess money.

After recording the contents of the circular, the judge ordered that police personnel should also be deployed at retail liquor shops in order to prevent untoward incidents. He also ordered necessary action on the petitioner’s complaint with respect to the shops having collected excess amount in the past.

During the course of the hearing, the judge said that TASMAC must ensure the enforcement of the circular in letter and spirit. “When supermarkets issue bills even for a single toothbrush and the State of Kerala ensures issuance of bills for the sale of liquor, why can’t it be done in Tamil Nadu?” he asked.

Published - August 07, 2026 01:07 pm IST