Patna High Court on Wednesday passed an interim order directing the state government not to take any action against liquor manufacturers who have Indian-made foreign liquor (IMFL) in stock.

The order came as big relief for liquor manufacturers and stockists who had been asked on April 5 - the day total prohibition was enforced - to destroy their stock. The penalty threatened on erring persons included 10 years in jail besides fine.

The court passed the order while hearing a bunch of petitions filed by Confederation of Indian Alcoholic Beverage Companies, the Federation of Hotel and Restaurant Associations of Bihar, Manoj Kumar, Shiv Shankar Prasad and Shailesh Kumar Sinha, challenging the state government's sudden decision to introduce total prohibition.

The division bench of Justice Navaniti Prasad Singh and Justice Chakradhari Sharan Singh said implementation of the notification was making the petitioners feel threatened and coerced by excise authorities to take back all stock they had supplied, those in transit for delivery and those placed in bonded warehouse.

"We are prima facie of the view that in all these three transactions, sale having been completed, transfer of property in specific goods having taken place, they are now the goods of the Bihar State Beverages Corporation Limited," the judges said. "What the corporation does with those goods would be the corporation's lookout. No coercive action can be taken against the manufacturers in this regard.'

The court said the order is interim and would be subject to one that is finally passed in the writ proceeding on April 19, next date of hearing.

Senior counsel Y.V. Giri, who appeared on behalf of the petitioner, said the court ordered not to destroy liquor stock lying unused till the matter is undecided. The bone of contention is financial losses suffered by manufacturers who supplied liquor to Bihar State Beverages Corporation Limited (BSBCL) before the April 5 notification and have not been paid.

Principal additional advocate general (PAAG) Lalit Kishore told court the government was ready to return Rs 16 lakh taken from bars and restaurant owners serving foreign-made liquor for license renewal for 2016-17. Asked what amount the government should give manufacturers for supplying liquor to BSBCL, Kishore said they would first have to evaluate stocks. "We will give whatever amount court orders," the PAAG said.

He told court the government is not going to destroy liquor stock nor force manufacturers to take back stock.

In the petition, liquor manufacturers have demanded Rs 500 crore against supply of foreign made liquor to BSBCL.