Excise policy: CBI moves HC challenging bail granted to bizmen Nair, Boinpally

New Delhi, Nov 23 (PTI) The CBI approached the Delhi High Court on Wednesday, challenging a trial court's order granting bail to businessmen Vijay Nair and Abhishek Boinpally in a corruption case related to the Excise Policy 2021-22 for the national capital.

The Central Bureau of Investigation's (CBI) petition challenging the bail order is listed for hearing on Thursday before Justice Yogesh Khanna.

While granting them bail, the trial court had said since the maximum punishment for the offence alleged against Nair and Boinpally is only seven years in jail, it cannot be considered severe enough to deny them the relief.

Nair, the Aam Aadmi Party's (AAP) communication in-charge, and Boinpally, however, remain in custody as they were arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a money-laundering case related to the excise policy, which has since been scrapped.

The trial court, in its November 14 order granting them bail, had noted that the corruption case was based on an FIR lodged by the CBI, which does not say that Nair and Boinpally committed any substantive offences, but they are only alleged to be part of a criminal conspiracy.

An FIR was lodged in the matter after Delhi Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena recommended a CBI probe.

The CBI has alleged that Nair was involved in meeting the other co-accused and liquor manufacturers as well as distributors at various hotels in Hyderabad, Mumbai and Delhi for arranging "ill-gotten money through hawala operators".

The probe agency has also claimed that Boinpally was part of the meetings and involved in the conspiracy to launder money along with another accused, liquor businessman Sameer Mahendru, who is currently lodged in the Tihar jail.

In the money-laundering case, the ED had raided nearly three dozen locations in Delhi and Punjab following the arrest of Mahendru, the managing director of liquor distributor Indospirit Group, which is based in Delhi's Jor Bagh.

The other accused in the case are Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, former excise commissioner Arva Gopi Krishna, former deputy commissioner Anand Tiwari and former assistant commissioner Pankaj Bhatnagar.

According to the two central agencies, irregularities were committed while modifying the excise policy and undue favours extended to licence holders.

The Delhi government had implemented the excise policy on November 17, 2021, but scrapped it at the end of September this year amid allegations of corruption. PTI SKV RC