New Delhi, May 29 (IANS): In a relief to liquor companies in Bihar, the Supreme Court on Monday gave them another two months' time till July 31 to dispose of their unsold stocks.

A vacation bench of Justice A.K. Sikri and Justice Deepak Gupta gave the extension to the liquor firms, as senior counsel Kapil Sibal told the bench that they needed more time to dispose of their stocks.

The earlier two months' time given on March 31 was coming to an end on May 31.

The liquor companies had moved the top court on May 24, seeking time for destroying their unsold liquor stocks worth Rs 200 crore lying in warehouses in Bihar.

However, the plea was opposed by Bihar government counsel, who alleged that illegal trade of liquor going on in the state was causing a law and order problem.

Rejecting the government's plea, the bench said that once the stocks of liquor were over, there would be no illegal trade.

The counsel for Bihar government also urged the court that no more further extension be given to the liquor firms after July 31. 

In the wake of the prohibition policy of the Nitish Kumar government, the top court had on March 31 ordered the liquor companies to export their old stocks that were lying in the warehouses of the Bihar State Beverage Corporation (BSBCL) by May 31.