“We have already lost 30 per cent of our customers after the ban on smoking; now there will be more losses,” says Ajay Kaushal, manager of Qash Qai, a year-old bar at Connaught Place.

Reclining on a plush sofa, Amit Arya, employed with a multi-national company, says: “Why don’t they just as well say that only those with chauffeurs are permitted to drink? This will give the police more excuses to harass common people like us.”

While a recent Delhi Traffic police survey reveals that 80 per cent customers at high-end bars in the city drive back on their own, challans for drunken driving in 2008 show a 90 per cent increase over the figures of 2007.

At the posh Q’BA bar in Connaught Place in Central Delhi, Rajiv Sinha, a customer says, “This means I will have to pay a policeman Rs 100 or 200 to let me go. It all ends at corruption.”

Bar owners in Delhi say they usually have no means to stop people from getting drunk. “On several occasions I have asked customers that they have had enough to drink, but they usually reply that it is none of my business. This is my bread and butter and I do not want to incur losses in my business. It is the customers’ problem and they should be careful,” says Firoz Ali, manager of Q’BA.

There are others who are happy with the idea of policemen outside bars and pubs. Haresh Bhatta, manager with a multinational company, thinks this is the best way to prevent deaths due to drunken driving. “If you have to drive, do not drink. If you cannot follow that rule, someone else has to make you do it,” says Bhatta.

Gurgaon bars ‘not under Delhi HC jurisdiction’
Bar owners in Gurgaon say the proposal to have cops stationed outside bars will not affect them as Gurgaon does not fall under the Delhi High Court’s jurisdiction. “We do not fall under the jurisdiction of the Delhi HC,” S K Tyagi, manager at 32 Milestone on NH-8, said. Assistant manager of The Odyssey on MG Road Vineet Grover added: “We do not have any policemen bothering our clients.” DCP (traffic) Satbir Singh was of the same view: “A Delhi High Court order is not binding on us. However, we conduct regular checks on drunken drivers.” —ENS