Today, Delhi District Court acquitted a man charged under the Delhi Excise Act for possessing 36 beer bottles.

The accused before the bench of Metropolitan Magistrate Apoorva Rana submitted that the prosecution was unable to provide any "cogent evidence" and that there was the possibility of the accused having been falsely implicated in the case.

In the said matter, the Court was hearing a case against Mintu Choudhary, who was charged under section 33 of the Delhi Excise Act for possessing beer bottles without any permit or licence at Bijwasan in southwest Delhi on August 30, 2018.

Section 33 of the act describes the punishment for possessing any intoxicant beyond the prescribed quantity. According to rule 20 of the excise act, the maximum limit for individual possession is nine litres for Indian and foreign liquor (whisky, rum, gin, vodka, brandy), 18 litres for wine, beer, liqueur, cider and alcopop and three litres for country liquor.

"This court hereby accords the benefit of the doubt to the accused for the offence under section 33 of the Delhi Excise Act and holds the accused not guilty of commission of the said offence. Accused Mintu Choudhary is thus, acquitted…," the bench said.

Further, the Court added, 

"This court is of the opinion that the prosecution has failed to bring on record any cogent evidence in order to prove the commission of and guilt of the accused…beyond a reasonable doubt, thus, entitling the accused person to benefit of doubt and acquittal," the magistrate added.

"... accused may have been falsely implicated in the present case…In fact, this possibility of planted recovery upon the accused further gains strength from the fact that the police did not bother at all to discover the source of illicit liquor or to further enquire about the potential customers of the same," the court said.