Cuttack, Oct. 10: Twenty self-employed women have moved Orissa High Court seeking closure of a beer parlour on shop operating within 50 metres of the state highway at Badapat Chhak in Nayagarh district "to restore peace and tranquillity in the area".

Babina Sahoo, 36, and the other women, all presidents and secretaries of various self-help groups in Odagaon block have turned to the court for intervention after objections, protests, peaceful demonstrations and representations to the authorities over the past three years yielded no result.

The licensee, they alleged, continued to run the beer parlour and illegally sell country liquor despite orders from the Nayagarh collector to close it and shift to "a suitable and unobjectionable site".

In a PIL, the women have expressed concern that "a good number of people have become addicted to drinking since opening of the beer parlour in December 2012, and for some reason or the other, this has led to increase in serious family disputes in the area".

"A large number of poor people and school as well as college-going students have become addicted to drinking. While it affects their health, the hard-earned money of the labourer class is also being drained away," the PIL contends.

"Often criminal elements in drunken state abuse and outrage the modesty of women and girl students who pass by the beer parlour. They also demand ransom from passers by," the petitioners have alleged, while seeking closure and cancellation of the licence of the beer parlour operating in Sarankul police limits.

"After a preliminary hearing, the division bench of Chief Justice Vineet Saran and Justice B.R. Sarangi posted the matter to after two weeks for hearing along with a reply from the state government," said petitioner counsel Khirod Rout.

"The court, accordingly, issued notices to principal the excise department secretary, excise commissioner, collector and district magistrate and superintendent excise of Nayagarh to file responses by then," Rout said.

The petitioners have also sought the court's direction "to any independent agency to make an inquiry into the illegal grant of licence for the beer parlour at Badapat Chhak and take appropriate action against the errant officials".

According to the petition, a licence was issued for opening the beer parlour on shop at Badapat Chhak even after people of the locality opposed it, on the basis of a feasibility report prepared without any field inquiry.

Following complaints from the public, the Nayagarh collector first, on January 22, 2013, issued an order to the owner "not to open the beer parlour without further orders".

On April 14, 2013, the collector again directed the owner "to select a suitable and unobjectionable site for shifting of the shop as quickly as possible", after the inspector in charge of the local police station and the Nayagarh superintendent of police reported "severe law and order situation" due to the running of the beer parlour.

As the owner did not close or shift the shop, the collector, on December 22, 2015, requested the commissioner-cum-secretary of the excise department "to close the shop to avoid further law and order situation in the area". But no action followed. Taking advantage of it, the licensee continues to run the shop, the petition alleged.

The petitioners further alleged that the shop owner "in connivance with the local police, got false criminal cases lodged against a number of people and also assaulted women by hiring goons" following demonstrations by people of the locality for closure of the Beer Parlour.