Excise Case: Hyderabad businessman Arun Pillai gets 5 days interim relief from trial court

New Delhi [India], December 7 : The Rouse Avenue Court of Delhi on Thursday granted five days custody parole to Businessman Arun Pillai in a money laundering case related to excise policy to look after his ailing wife in Hyderabad.
The Special Judge MK Nagpal said the interim bail is being disposed of with directions that the accused and applicant Arun Ramachandran Pillai shall be taken to his hometown at Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh under adequate security arrangements by air or by train on a date requested by him and he shall be permitted to remain at his house or in hospital, as the case may be required, for a period of 5 days, excluding the travel time between Delhi to Hyderabad.
He shall also be permitted to accompany his wife for undergoing all the above tests, procedures or processes at the concerned hospital within the above-mentioned time, he further said.
However, the Court also imposed the conditions that the applicant shall not tamper or attempt to tamper with evidence or try to influence the witnesses of this case in any manner: he shall not interact with any media person in any manner; he shall not meet anybody except members of his family and further, he shall also not have any access to the phone or internet during the above-said visit.
Arun Ramachandran Pillai has recently moved the trial Court through advocates Deepak Nagar and Prakhar Shukla and prayed for eight weeks' bail citing his wife's medical grounds.
Advocate Nitesh Rana appeared for Arun Pillai and also requested for grant of custody parole to the accused for a few days so that he can be physically present with his wife for her moral support for undergoing the medical treatment.
Hyderabad-based businessman Arun Ramachandra Pillai was arrested by the ED in March 2023 in connection with the Delhi Excise policy scam. Arun Ramchandra Pillai was arrested by ED for allegations that he collected bribes from another accused, Sameer Mahendru, Managing Director of lndospirit and handed it over to the other accused.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has filed a supplementary complaint in the alleged liquor scam case, against Arun Ramachandran Pillai and Delhi-based businessman Amandeep Dhall.
The chargesheet stated that Arun Pillai had given false statements under section 50 of PMLA, 2002 during the investigation.
"Arun Pillai has actively participated in evidence destruction and has changed/used/destroyed 5 nos. of mobile phones in the span of 2 years. The phones used by Sh Arun Pillai during the period of the scam have not been produced by him during the investigation," ED stated.
Further, the chats with Arun Pillai found from other persons' phones have not been found from his phones, which were seized during the search that is because Arun Pillai has indulged in the destruction of evidence, the chargesheet stated.
Arun Pillai has attempted to create a legal facade by allegedly filing a retraction of all his statements during the period of investigation given under section 50 of PMLA.
"This act of Arun Pillai is only to create a legal facade and is motivated to derail the investigation," the agency further stated.
In the ED case, Businessman Amandeep Singh Dhal was arrested on March 1 and Hyderabad-based businessman Arun Ramchandra Pillai was arrested on March 6, 2023.
The ED and the CBI have alleged that irregularities were committed while modifying the Excise Policy, undue favours were extended to licence holders, the licence fee was waived or reduced and the L-1 licence was extended without the competent authority's approval.
The beneficiaries diverted "illegal" gains to the accused officials and made false entries in their books of account to evade detection.
As alleged, the Excise Department had decided to refund the Earnest Money Deposit of about Rs 30 crore to a successful tenderer against the set rules. Even though there was no enabling provision, a waiver on tendered licence fees was allowed from December 28, 2021, to January 27, 2022, due to COVID-19.
This allegedly caused a loss of Rs 144.36 crore to the exchequer, which has been instituted on a reference from the Union Home Ministry following a recommendation from Delhi Lieutenant-Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena.