Illicit trade: How Gurugram liquor vendors flout pricing norms to offload old stock, sell products below MRP

Amid complaints that liquor vendors in the city are flouting pricing norms and that a parallel, unregulated pricing system exists, the Gurugram excise department has launched an inquiry, reported the Hindustan Times.

The liquor vendors are allegedly undercutting the minimum retail sale price (MRSP) for alcoholic beverages and charging bars and pubs well beyond permissible limits.

The officials warned that the violations of MRSP norms may indicate value-added tax (VAT) evasion and also raise concerns about the sale of potentially substandard or unauthorised liquor in the market.

Earlier, the pub owners had also alleged the existence of a parallel, unregulated pricing.

What the law says 

Under Haryana’s excise policy, MRSP is the mandatory floor price for alcoholic beverages. It also says that below the MSRP, sales of liquor are prohibited.

The sale of liquor under the MSRP indicates that taxes are not being correctly levied or paid on transactions.

When does the violation arise?

As per the law, a violation arises when outgoing L-2 licence holders—retail vendors—attempt to offload old stock by offering steep discounts as their tenure ends.

The report says that vendors are reportedly slashing prices to avoid incurring losses while handing over inventory to new licence holders.

The current excise policy and the new policy, effective 12 June 2025 to 31 March 2027, state that L-2 licensees are barred from offering discounts below the MRSP. Not only this, the policy also imposes a cap on how much more L-2 vendors can charge bars and pubs, which is not more than 10 per cent above the MRSP.

However, the HT reported that a few vendors are reportedly selling a 750 ml bottle of VAT 69 whisky, with an MRSP of ₹1,550, for ₹1,000. While some bars allege they are being charged ₹220 for a 330 ml bottle of Corona beer, which has an MRSP of ₹95—over double the allowed margin.