“Trust My Boy,” Arvind Kejriwal Told Businessman: New Charge In Liquor Case

An accused in the Delhi Liquor scam — Aam Aadmi Party communications in-charge Vijay Nair — had arranged a FaceTime video call from his phone between Sameer Mahendru, chief of Indospirits and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, the Enforcement Directorate has alleged in a new chargesheet.

On behalf of AAP leaders, Vijay Nair received ₹ 100 crore from the “South group” as advance for licenses in Delhi liquor policy, the agency has alleged.

“Vijay is my boy, you should trust him and carry on with him,” Mr Kejriwal had apparently told Sameer Mahendru, the Enforcement Directorate has claimed in the chargesheet, which has been accessed by NDTV.

Asked about the matter, Mr Kejriwal said, “The Enforcement Directorate must have filed 5,000 cases”. “The ED is meant to topple governments and buy and sell MLAs,” he added, terming the chargesheet “complete fiction”.

The chargesheet also claims that AAP had used the money from liquor scam for its election campaign in Goa. Besides, cash payments to the tune of ₹ 70 lakh were made to volunteers of the survey teams, the agency has alleged.

The “South Group” comprised Kavitha of Telangana’s ruling Bharat Rashtra Samithi, Magunta Srinivasalu Reddy, an MP from Andhra Pradesh’s ruling YSR Congress, and Sarath Reddy of Aurobindo Pharma, the agency has alleged.

The ED and the Central Bureau of Investigation have claimed that irregularities were committed while modifying Delhi’s excise policy with connivance and kickbacks from the liquor lobby. Under it, licence fee was waived or reduced and undue favours were extended to liquor licence holders, the agencies have claimed.

There were also allegations that liquor firms made 12 per cent profit in the process, of which 6 per cent was routed to public servants through middlemen like Hyderabad-based businessman Abhishek Bonipally.

Delhi’s Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia has been named as an accused and questioned in the case. The others accused in the case include then Excise Commissioner Arva Gopi Krishna, Deputy Commissioner Anand Tiwari and Assistant Commissioner Pankaj Bhatnagar.

AAP had claimed that the case, which came up in the run-up to the Gujarat elections, was a diversionary tactic of the BJP, which later swept the polls. Mr Sisodia, after a nine-hour questioning by the ED officials, claimed that he was asked to quit AAP.