The uttar pradesh intoxicating liquor (objectionable advertisements) act, 1976

114 
 
THE UTTAR PRADESH INTOXICATING LIQUOR (OBJECTIONABLE 
ADVERTISEMENTS) ACT, 19761 
[U. P. Act No. 3 of 1976] 
 
[Passed in Hindi by the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Council on March 31, 1976 and 
by the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly on April 2, 1976.  
 
Received the assent of the Governor on April 12, 1976 under Article 200 of       
‘the Constitution of India’, and was published in the Uttar Pradesh Gazette, Extraordinary 
dated April 13, 1976.]  
AN 
ACT 
to prohibit the advertisement of liqu or by cinematographic e xhibition and on 
walls, build ings and  hoardings in public place and to provide f or matters connected 
therewith.  
It is hereby enacted in the Twenty -seventh Year of the Republic of India as 
follows:- 
Short title,  
extent and  
commencement 
1. (1)  This Act m ay be called the Uttar Pradesh Intoxicating Liquor (Objectionable 
Advertisements) Act, 1976.  
(2)   It extends to the whole of Uttar Pradesh.  
(3)   It shall be deemed to have come into force on November 1, 1975.   
Definitions  2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires-  
(a) "advertisement" includes any printed, cyclostyled, type-written, hand-
written or painted matter or a design or pictorial representation an d also 
includes the distribution or display of such matter, design or representation on 
any wall, building or hoarding in a public place or an announcement by means 
of producing o r transmitting light or sound, whether by cinematographic 
exhibition, neon signs or otherwise;  
(b) "Excise Inspector" or  other "Excise Officer" means an Excise 
Inspector or other E xcise Officer appointed under section 10 of the United 
Provinces Excise Act, 1910;  
(c) "intoxicating liquor" d oes not include a drug as de fined in the Drugs 
and Cosmetics Act, 1940.  
Prohibition of  
advertisements 
relating to  
liquor  
3. No person shall publish or cause to be published any adv ertisement which 
solicits the use of, or offers for sale any intoxicating liquor.  
Explanation-- A sign -board on any premises in which intoxicating 
liquor is manufactured or sold or offered f or sale indicating merely that such 
liquor is manufactured, or sold or offered for sale in those premises, and any 
catalogue or price list of such liquor kept or maintained in such premises, 
shall not amount to the publication of such an advertisement.  
 
1. For Statement of Objects and Reasons, see Uttar Pradesh Gazette 
Extraordinary dated March 31, 1976. 
 
115 
 
 
[The Uttar Pradesh Intoxicating Liquor (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1976]        [Section 4-7] 
 
 
Presumption 4. Where any advertisement relating to intoxicating liquor has been published 
in contravention of section 3, it shall be presumed, unless the contrary is 
proved, that the person on whose behalf it purports to have been published is 
the person who has published it or caused it to be published.  
Power of  
inspection and  
seizure of  
material object  
containing 
published 
advertisements  
5. (1)  Subject to the provisions of any rules made in this behalf, any Excise Officer 
not below the rank of Excise Inspector may-  
 
(a) enter and search at all reasonable times with such assistance, if any, 
as he considers necessary, any place in which he has reason to believe that an 
offence punishable under this Act has been or is being committed;  
 
(b) seize and detain any article used for purposes of an advertisement 
which he has reason to believe contravenes any of the provisions of this Act;  
 
(c) examine any record, register, document or any other material object 
found in any place mentioned in clause (a) and seize the same if he has 
reason to believe that it may  furnish evidence of the commission of an 
offence punishable under this Act.  
 
(2)  Where any officer seizes any property under sub -section (1) such seizure 
shall be reported to a M agistrate forthwith, and the provisions of Chapter 
XXXIV of the Code of Cri minal Procedure, 1973, shall apply to the custody 
and disposal thereof as they apply to property referred to therein.  
Penalty  
 
6. Any person who contravenes the provisions of section 3 shall, on conviction, 
be punishable with imprisonment which may extend to six months or with 
fine or with both.  
Offence by  
companies  
7. (1)  If the person committing an offence under this Act is a company, the 
company as well  as every person in -charge of and responsible to the 
company for the conduct of its business at  the time of the commission of the 
offence shall be deemed to be guilty of the offence and shall be liable to b e 
proceeded against and punished accordingly : 
Provided that nothing contai ned in this sub -section shall render any 
such person liable to an y punishment provided in this Act if he proves that 
the offence wa s committed without his know ledge or that he exercised all 
due diligence to prevent the commission of such offence.  
(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub -section (1), where an offence  
under this Act ha s been committed by a company and it is proved that the 
offence was comm itted with the consent or connivance of, or is attributable 
to any neglect on the part of any managing agent, secretary, tre asurer, 
director, manager, or other officer of the company such man aging agent, 
secretary, treasurer, director, manager or other offi cer of the company shall 
also be deemed to be guilty of that offence and shall be liable to be 
proceeded against and punished accordingly.  
116 
 
[The Uttar Pradesh Intoxicating Liquor (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1976]     [Section 8-12] 
 
 
  Explanation-- For the purposes of this section --  
(a) "company" means any body corporate and incl udes a firm  or 
other association of individuals; and 
(b) "director" in relation to a firm means a partner in the firm.  
 
Investigation of 
offence 
 
Act 2 of 1974 
8. (1)  An Excise Officer not b elow the rank of Excise Inspector may investigate 
any offence under this Act committed within the limits of the area in which 
he exercises jurisdiction and shall have in respect of such investigation the 
same powers as an officer-in-charge of a police station has i n a cognizable 
case under the provisions of Chapter XII of the Code of Criminal 
Procedure, 1973 and may in particular make such i nvestigation without an 
order of a Magistrate.  
(2)   In other respects, the provision s of the said Code relating  to arrests, 
searches, search warrants, production of persons arrested and investigation 
of offences shall, so far as may be, apply to all actions t aken in these 
respects under this Act.  
 
Protection of  
action taken in  
good faith  
9. No suit, prosecution or other legal proceeding shall lie against any person 
for anything which is in good faith done or intended to be done under this 
Act. 
 
Power to  
compound 
offences  
10. (1) The District Magistrate may accept from any person against whom a 
reasonable suspicion exists that he has committed any offence punishable 
under this Act such sum of money as he thinks fit by way of composition 
for the offence which such person is suspected to have committed.  
(2) On the payment of such  sum of money to the District Magistrate, the  
suspected person, if in  custody, shall be discharged and no other 
proceedings shall be taken against him.  
(3) The provisions of this  section sh all apply also where a prosecution or an  
appeal against c onviction of an offence under this Act is pending, and in 
such a case the com position of such an offence under this section shall 
have the effect of acquittal of an accused with whom the offence has been 
compounded.  
 
Power to make  
rules 
11. The State Government may , by notification in the Gazette, make rules for 
carrying out the purposes of this Act.  
 
Repeal and  
savings 
 
 
U.P. Ordinance 
no.33 of 1975 
12. (1) The Uttar Pradesh Intoxicating Liquor (Objection able Advertisements) 
Ordinance, 1976, is hereby repealed. 
(2)  Notwithstanding such repeal or the repeal of the Uttar  Pradesh Intoxicating 
Liquor (Objectionable Advertisements) Ordinance, 1975 by the aforesaid 
Ordinance of 1976 anyth ing done or any action taken under the said 
Ordinances shall be deemed to have been done or taken under this Act, as 
if this Act were in force at all material times.  
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