Delhi Excise policy case: Court grants bail to two accused persons
Jul 22, 2023
New Delhi [India], July 22 : The Rouse Avenue Court on Saturday granted bail to two accused persons in Delhi Excise policy case. This bail has been granted in the CBI case.
Special judge M K Nagpal granted bail to Chanpreet Singh and Arvind Kumar Singh on furnishing a personal bond of Rs one lakh and one surety in the like amount by each accused.
Both accused were in custody since May 2023. Chanpreet was arrested on May 15 and Arvind Kumar Singh was arrested on May 12.
The present case of CBI was registered on 17.08.2022 in relation to irregularities committed in framing and implementation of excise policy of the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD) for the year 2021-22.
Manish Sisodia, the then Dy. Chief Minister as well as Excise Minister of the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in Delhi and 14 other persons/ entities were specifically named as accused in FIR of the case, the court said in the order.
Senior advocate Siddharth Aggarwal, advocate Chirag Madan and Ravleen Sabharwal appeared for accused Chanpreet Singh and advocate Rajat Bhardwaj, Kanisk Raj and Kaustubh Khanna appeared for accused Arvind Kumar Singh, as well as Pankaj Gupta, Senior PP represented the CBI.
The counsels for the accused persons argued that the arrest of their clients in the present case was totally illegal and unwarranted as they both had joined investigation of this case initially even without issuance of any formal notices and they even joined it on issuance of notices subsequently.
It was also argued that the applicants cooperated in investigation of the case and disclosed all the facts and information pertaining to this case as the same were in their knowledge and they also provided the documents desired by the investigating agency.
The counsels also argued that even as per the admitted case of prosecution, none of the two applicants was in liquor business or had any role to play with formulation or implementation of the excise policy and it is also not the case of prosecution that any of them was one of the conspirators, who were present in different meetings held between the accused Vijay Nair representing the accused Manish Sisodia and other politicians/public servants of the ruling AAP, representatives of members of the South liquor lobby and the other conspirators in liquor business in Delhi.
It was also submitted that none of the applicants was even admittedly involved in payment or transfer/transmission of the above advance kickback amount of Rs 90-100 crores by the South liquor lobby to accused Vijay Nair, out of which an amount of around Rs 30 crores is stated to have been paid through the approver Dinesh Arora.
It was stated in the CBI charge sheet that around Rs 90-100 crores in advance were paid through hawala channels to some politicians of the ruling AAP in Delhi and the other public servants involved in conspiracy by some persons in liquor business from South India, through the coaccused Vijay Nair, Abhishek Boinpally and Dinesh Arora (who subsequently turned approver), and the policy was manipulated and drafted in such a way so as to secure monopolization and cartelization of liquor business in Delhi and to derive undue benefits therefrom for the conspirators and for achieving this objective, besides effecting some other changes, the profit margin of wholesalers was increased from 5% to 12% for siphoning off 6% out of this 12% profit margin for payment of bribe or repayment of the above advance kickbacks to the South lobby.
It is alleged that they both were involved and instrumental in subsequent transfer of some amounts or part of the above kickbacks from Delhi to Goa in connection with election expenses of the AAP.
Senior PP for CBI strongly opposed the grant of bail to these two applicants and though he admitted that they were not party to the formulation of excise policy or they were even not involved in the liquor trade, but it is he submitted that they both are very much found to have been involved in transfer of huge amounts from Delhi to Goa, out of the above kickbacks and
towards payment of election expenses of AAP in assembly elections of Goa.
Senior PP for CBI submitted that since both the applicants have been found to be connected with money trail of the proceeds of crime of this case, they do not deserve to be granted bail and are required to be detained in custody.
