NEW DELHI: What began as a digital convenience for liquor buyers has quickly turned into a fresh political flashpoint in Delhi, with the Aam Aadmi Party taking on the BJP-led government of chief minister Rekha Gupta over an online liquor booking facility introduced by the Delhi State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (DSIIDC).The controversy has taken a new turn after officials claimed that the permission to develop the app was granted by the previous AAP government in December 2024, with the stated objectives of ensuring transparency in retail liquor sales and preventing the practice of pushing particular brands on customers, news agency PTI reported.The clarification came after former Delhi minister and AAP’s Delhi chief Saurabh Bharadwaj launched a sharp attack on the BJP government, demanding that the scheme be withdrawn and warning of political consequences if it is not.“If Rekha Gupta does not roll back this scheme, the minister will have to be sacked for this scheme. We will ensure Sirsa is sacked. Even his master ‘AS’ won’t be able to defend him,” Bharadwaj said in a post on X, referring to Delhi minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa.Bharadwaj issued a direct challenge to the government, saying, “We challenge the Rekha Gupta government that if they don’t shut this scheme, we won’t allow their government to function in Delhi.”The confrontation has turned a relatively limited digital service into a wider political battle over liquor policy, administrative accountability and the BJP and AAP’s competing claims over governance in the national capital.
No home delivery yet
The ‘Delhi Liquor Booking’ app allows eligible customers to check the availability of liquor brands, select a participating retail outlet, choose bottle sizes and quantities, and make payments online before collecting their purchases from the selected store.But there is one important limitation: the facility does not provide home delivery. Customers must visit the designated outlet and collect their booked bottles within 48 hours after the booking, following the required confirmation and verification process.As per the PTI report, the service is currently available only at DSIIDC-operated outlets, which number more than 200 across Delhi. The capital has over 700 retail liquor outlets run by four government corporations.
How it works
Officials say the system is intended to reduce queues at liquor stores, ease pressure on payment counters, improve transparency in pricing and billing, and give consumers greater freedom to choose their preferred brands without being influenced by retail sales practices.Customers receive a booking QR code after completing the online transaction, which can be scanned at the store to collect the purchase.The app is restricted to people above the permissible legal drinking age of 25 years. Under the applicable excise rules cited by officials, an individual is permitted to possess up to nine litres of whisky and 18 litres of beer. Orders can be cancelled before collection, but there is no provision for returning liquor once sold or picked up.
‘Your govt approved it’: Clarification adds a twist
Now, DSIIDC officials have said the initiative was not originally conceived by the current BJP government.According to a senior DSIIDC officer, the corporation’s management approved the development of the app in December 2024, and a work order was issued on January 2, 2025. The app was rolled out in November 2025 after the necessary trials.Since the app was originally only compatible with Android, a QR-code-enabled micro-site was rolled out on September 6 to give iOS users access and ensure platform neutrality.In the first year of its launch, the app saw a total of 3,629 transactions of around Rs 13 lakh worth of liquor sold in the 2025-26 financial year.This financial year, around Rs 30 lakh worth of liquor bottles have been sold so far in 10,730 transactions, the PTI report said quoting officials said.The corporation subsequently introduced a QR-code-enabled microsite on September 6 to make the service accessible to iPhone users, after the original app was compatible only with Android devices.Officials said the initiative was designed to promote digital governance, improve transparency and prevent brand pushing at retail outlets.The clarification has created an awkward political situation for the AAP, which is now opposing a facility that officials say received approval during its own tenure in government.DSIIDC has also made clear that the service remains confined to its own outlets rather than extending across all government-run liquor shops in the city.(With agency inputs)
