The excise department on Tuesday extended the liquor ban at The Park till September 9.

The ban was imposed last month after a number of people were arrested at the Park Street hospitality address for allegedly partying on a corridor till early hours in violation of Covid curbs.

In a separate order, the department slapped a 60-day liquor ban on Hotel Hindustan International (HHI). The ban came into effect on Tuesday.

“The ban on serving liquor at HHI, at the bars and in the rooms, would remain effective till October 2,” said an excise department official.

Like The Park, HHI, too, has come under the scanner for allegedly serving liquor post-8pm on July 10.

“Today both hotels were slapped with a 60-day ban on serving liquor at the bars and in the rooms. Since The Park ban came into effect 23 days ago, following an earlier order of the excise department, its 60-day period will end before that of HHI,” the official said.

“We have reasons to believe that both hotels had violated the state government order against serving liquor after 8pm, as a precaution against Covid. The decision to impose the ban was taken after taking into account the department's findings and other evidence. The ban will be reviewed after the 60-day period.”

At The Park, police had arrested 37 persons for allegedly partying on a second-floor corridor beyond midnight, to the accompaniment of loud music. The revellers were allegedly drinking, too.

An FIR was drawn up at Park Street police station.

The excise department initiated a probe into the incident after slapping a liquor ban on the hotel on July 11.

On July 30, officials of The Park had apparently told excise department officials that they were not sure whether the bottles and glasses seized by the police were from the hotel's stocks or brought by the revellers from outside.

“We also went through the FIR registered at Park Street police station and checked the hotel's liquor stock as well as the seized bottles,” an official of the department said.

The department had also summoned HHI officials for a hearing on July 22 following a report submitted by a team of senior excise officials who had raided the hotel’s sixth floor on the night of July 10. The officials mentioned in the report that they had reasons to believe that liquor had been served in a suite on the floor after 8pm.

“Officials of HHI couldn’t explain why our officers were prevented from visiting other floors of the hotel that night and why lights and elevators were switched off after they turned up,” the official said.

Officials of The Park and HHI said they had no comment to make on the excise department’s order.