A Division Bench of the Kerala High Court on Thursday stayed for three weeks a government order allowing sale of liquor to those suffering from withdrawal symptoms on the basis of a government doctor’s prescription.
The Bench comprising Justice A.K. Jayasankaran Nambiar and Justice Shaji P. Chaly issued the stay order while admitting writ petitions filed by G.S. Vijayakrishnan, general secretary, Kerala Government Medical Officers' Association (KGMOA) and Congress leader T.N. Prathapan, MP, challenging the order.
When the petitioners came up for hearing, counsel for the petitioners contended that the order was unethical and doctors could not be forced to prescribe alcohol for treating alcoholism.
State Attorney K.V. Sohan submitted that in States where liquor was banned similar orders had been issued for providing liquor on the basis of doctors’ prescription. In fact, allowing those suffering from withdrawal symptoms to take liquor on a moderate scale was part of the de-addiction treatment protocol.
During the hearing, the court orally observed that the order was a recipe for disaster. The government order was silent on the medical diagnosis which the doctors should make before permitting a patient to take alcohol, the court noted.
The petitioners pointed out that the government order required government doctors to certify that a patient was having withdrawal symptom to enable him to obtain a pass for buying liquor from Excise authorities. The government had issued the order in the wake of closure of beverages outlets and bar counters following the lockdown.
They said that it was a fact that a liquor addict might suffer from Alcohol Dependence Syndrome (ADS) commonly called as “withdrawal symptoms due to non-availability of liquor. The prescription of liquor for such person by a doctor went against the Indian Medical Council (Professional Conduct, Etiquette and Ethics) Regulations, 2002.
Besides, it was against the guidelines issued by the Health Services Director for treatment of ADS-affected persons.
