The Kerala government has revoked the bar license granted to an air lounge bar situated at Terminal-3 of Cochin International Airport, overturning an approval sanctioned during the tenure of former Excise Commissioner Sriram Sambasiva Rao. The action comes days after Rao was removed from the post of Excise Commissioner, following a row over the sanctioning of licenses despite official instructions to withhold decisions until the formulation of the state’s new liquor policy. In the revocation order issued by Additional Excise Commissioner R. Jayashankar, who currently holds additional charge as Excise Commissioner, it has been specified that the applicant may request a refund of the Rs 2 lakh license fee remitted during the application process.

​Controversy over lounge bar clearance ahead of liquor policy

​The cancellation stems from a directive previously issued by Excise Minister M. Liju, who sought an explanation from Rao regarding two lounge bar applications. The government had earlier instructed the department to freeze decisions on fresh licenses until the implementation of the revised liquor policy, but the clearance process for the airport bar had nonetheless moved forward. In his written response prior to his removal, Rao maintained that excise commissioners have held the statutory authority to issue FL-7 licenses since 2011 without requiring prior government permission, noting that such permits apply exclusively to serving bona fide passengers in airport transit lounges. Rao had also claimed that he withheld the final license certificate once the administration clarified its stance, but the government has now formally invalidated the authorization granted to the establishment.

​Vigilance probe requested against senior department officials

​The regulatory reversal coincides with an escalating internal dispute across the state excise apparatus. On the day of his removal from office, Rao recommended a Vigilance inquiry against Joint Excise Commissioner S. Vinod and Deputy Excise Commissioner Ajay over allegations of bribery and procedural irregularities. Alongside the corruption allegations, Rao registered severe objections regarding the transfer of 32 department officers, asserting that the transfers were executed without his mandatory consent and through external consultations involving service organizations and the minister’s office. The formal request for an anti-corruption probe has intensified scrutiny over operational divisions and internal authority within the department.

​Allegations of intimidation surrounding officer transfer lists

​Adding another layer to the administrative crisis, an excise inspector has filed a formal complaint with Minister M. Liju accusing the former commissioner of intimidation. The complainant, Aaron Varghese, who was assigned to draft transfer lists for excise inspectors and circle inspectors, stated that he prepared the roster on November 3 after assuming duty on November 1, with the Additional Commissioner (Administration) issuing it as an official order the following day. According to the complaint, Rao summoned Varghese and a section superintendent to his office on November 6, reprimanded them for not presenting the roster to him beforehand, and pressured them to state in writing that the list had been drafted with the direct involvement of the staff association and the minister’s office. While the cancellation order has taken immediate administrative effect, the competing allegations of graft and coercion remain subject to subsequent departmental inquiry.