News Analysis India

Tag: Liquor Scam

  • Arvind Kejriwal ED custody: Setback for AAP: Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal sent to ED custody till March 28 in liquor case

    In a massive development, a Delhi court on Friday sent Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to the Enforcement Directorate’s custody till March 28, a day after his arrest in the excise policy-linked money laundering case.

    Reportedly, Special Judge Kaveri Baweja at the Rouse Avenue court said that Kejriwal will be produced before the court on March 28 at 2 p.m.

    During the proceedings, ED told a special PMLA court that Arvind Kejriwal is kingpin and key conspirator of Delhi liquor scam in collusion with his ministers, AAP leaders.Arvind Kejriwal “took advantage” of being the chief minister of Delhi to facilitate money laundering by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which is a “major beneficiary” of the proceeds of crimes generated in the alleged liquor scam case, the ED claimed.

    “Arvind Kejriwal, chief minister of NCT of Delhi is the kingpin and key conspirator of the Delhi Excise scam in collusion with ministers of Delhi government, AAP leaders and other persons,” the federal agency informed a special PMLA court while seeking his custody.

    It claimed in its remand papers that “Arvind Kejriwal was involved in the conspiracy of formulation of the excise policy 2021-22 to favour certain persons and also involved in the demanding of kickbacks from liquor businessmen in exchange of favours granting in the said policy.”Additional Solicitor General (ASG) SV Raju, representing the Enforcement Directorate, sought a 10-day remand of Kejriwal in the trial court. The investigating agency informed the court that Kejriwal was the key conspirators in the liquor scam, in addition to another ministers and leaders of AAP.”Kejriwal acted as the middleman between the ‘South group’ and the accused in the liquor scam,” the ED has alleged. Kejriwal received several crores of rupees as kickbacks from this group for formulating and implementing the Delhi Excise Policy, ED has alleged.

    Ahead of the Punjab elections, Kejriwal had demanded Rs 100 crore from some accused from the South group, ED claimed.

    “AAP is not an individual, but a company. So every person responsible for conduct of a company will be held responsible,” ED alleged in the court.

    Raju submitted that the proceeds of crime are not only just Rs 100 crore. “Hawala trails of Rs 45 crores traced, the money was used in Goa election,” ASG said.

    The ED counsel claimed that Vijay Nair, who was the media in charge of AAP, was working for Delhi CM Kejriwal. Nair, who the agency said lives adjacent to the residence of Kejriwal and acted as a middleman between the AAP and the ‘South Group’.

    Senior Advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi appearing for Kejriwal opposed the remand plea and submitted that the agency needs to show the necessity to arrest. Singhvi argued that the power of arrest and the necessity of arrest are two different things.

    Singhvi said that in the history of 75 years of independence this is the first time a sitting chief minister is arrested, the first time four leaders of his party are arrested. Singhvi further said it’s like having the result before the first vote is cast.

  • Conman’s claims: Sukesh releases WhatsApp chats with BRS’ Kavitha, AAP’s Jain

    Express News Service

    NEW DELHI: Mandoli jail inmate Sukesh Chandrasekhar has for the first time released his alleged WhatsApp chats with Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekar Rao’s daughter K Kavitha and jailed AAP leader Satyendra Jain. He claimed that his conversation with them indicates a nexus between the Aam Aadmi party, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, and BRS leader in the so-called liquor policy scam.

    In a letter written to Delhi LG VK Saxena, Chandrasekhar alleged that there are multiple contracts and business transactions between him and Aam Aadmi Party and CM Kejriwal.

    “This very application and chats attached shows the nexus of Aam Aadmi party, Mr Arvind Kejriwal and BRS leader K Kavitha, who are involved in Delhi liquor scam,” Chandrasekhar said in his letter.

    He stated that the submitted chat will help the ongoing investigation into the liquor scam case. “The said chats are in regard to Rs 15 Crore given by me to Mr Arvind Kejriwal and Satyendra Jain which was asked to be delivered to K Kavitha of BRS party in Hyderabad,” the letter read.

    As per the screen grabs of the alleged chats shared by Sukesh’s legal counsel Anant Malik with the New Indian Express, it could be clearly read that Chandrasekhar was in a very codified conversation with some person whose number he had saved with the name ‘Kavita Akka TRS’.

    One of the messages written by the sender read, “AK bro package has to be given. It’s ready with me.” Chandrasekhar claimed that this package was an amount of Rs 15 Crore.

    In another chat with a mobile number that he had not saved and claimed it to be of Satyendra Jain, one of the messages could be read as,”Bro Ghee tin ready. Yes bro 15 Kg.” Sukesh said that the ghee refers to money in their code words and 15 Kg meant Rs 15 Crore. In the same chat he even wrote, “Inform big bro” to which the receiver replied,”AK Bhai knows.”

    Sukesh, presently lodged in Delhi’s Mandoli Jail, was arrested for allegedly cheating and extorting money from some high-profile people, including former Fortis Healthcare promoter Shivinder Mohan Singh’s wife Aditi Singh. The Enforcement Directorate, which is probing the money laundering cases against Sukesh, has also questioned several Bollywood actors and models, including actor Jacqueline Fernandez for their alleged links to Chandrasekhar.

    Notably, the New Indian Express had broken the story of Chandrasekhar’s allegations against AAP minister Jain on November 1, last year and since then, he has written multiple letters addressed to the media and Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena.

    NEW DELHI: Mandoli jail inmate Sukesh Chandrasekhar has for the first time released his alleged WhatsApp chats with Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekar Rao’s daughter K Kavitha and jailed AAP leader Satyendra Jain. He claimed that his conversation with them indicates a nexus between the Aam Aadmi party, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, and BRS leader in the so-called liquor policy scam.

    In a letter written to Delhi LG VK Saxena, Chandrasekhar alleged that there are multiple contracts and business transactions between him and Aam Aadmi Party and CM Kejriwal.

    “This very application and chats attached shows the nexus of Aam Aadmi party, Mr Arvind Kejriwal and BRS leader K Kavitha, who are involved in Delhi liquor scam,” Chandrasekhar said in his letter.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    He stated that the submitted chat will help the ongoing investigation into the liquor scam case. “The said chats are in regard to Rs 15 Crore given by me to Mr Arvind Kejriwal and Satyendra Jain which was asked to be delivered to K Kavitha of BRS party in Hyderabad,” the letter read.

    As per the screen grabs of the alleged chats shared by Sukesh’s legal counsel Anant Malik with the New Indian Express, it could be clearly read that Chandrasekhar was in a very codified conversation with some person whose number he had saved with the name ‘Kavita Akka TRS’.

    One of the messages written by the sender read, “AK bro package has to be given. It’s ready with me.” Chandrasekhar claimed that this package was an amount of Rs 15 Crore.

    In another chat with a mobile number that he had not saved and claimed it to be of Satyendra Jain, one of the messages could be read as,”Bro Ghee tin ready. Yes bro 15 Kg.” Sukesh said that the ghee refers to money in their code words and 15 Kg meant Rs 15 Crore. In the same chat he even wrote, “Inform big bro” to which the receiver replied,”AK Bhai knows.”

    Sukesh, presently lodged in Delhi’s Mandoli Jail, was arrested for allegedly cheating and extorting money from some high-profile people, including former Fortis Healthcare promoter Shivinder Mohan Singh’s wife Aditi Singh. The Enforcement Directorate, which is probing the money laundering cases against Sukesh, has also questioned several Bollywood actors and models, including actor Jacqueline Fernandez for their alleged links to Chandrasekhar.

    Notably, the New Indian Express had broken the story of Chandrasekhar’s allegations against AAP minister Jain on November 1, last year and since then, he has written multiple letters addressed to the media and Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena.

  • Power Games: Rahul plans Bharat Jodo-2 from Guj to Arunachal

    Express News Service

    Direct actionRahul plans Bharat Jodo-2 from Guj to Arunachal

    Gandhi’s political guru Gopal Krishna Gokhale gave him a piece of critical advice when the Mahatma returned from South Africa to take a plunge into India’s freedom movement. He asked Gandhi to travel across India, meet the common people and listen to them to understand the country. Gandhi followed the advice and the rest is history. Rahul Gandhi seems to have taken this leaf out of the Mahatma’s playbook. Sources say he plans to follow up the first leg of the Kanyakumari-to-Kashmir Bharat Jodo Yatra with another one from Gujarat to Arunachal Pradesh — a Porbandar to Parshuram Kund yatra. The unexpected success of the yatra with an overwhelming response across the south and central India has removed whatever doubts and dilemmas he had over the direct contact plan, according to sources. Rahul has repeatedly complained that the mainstream media was not raising issues concerning common people and ignoring the voice of opposition. Sources say the first leg of the yatra has convinced him that direct contact with the people by walking through the villages, towns and cities was more effective than reaching out to them through the media. He feels that the vast swathes of the country comprising Gujarat, UP, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal, Assam, all the way to Arunachal need to be covered too. Sources say there is no doubt over Bharat Jodo-2, only the dates are to be finalised. It can start anytime after the first leg ends in February next year.

    Flying highReliance to provide aerospace solutions with DRDO

    Mukesh Ambani’s technology company Jio Platforms has quietly entered into teaming agreements with several aerospace laboratories of the state-owned Defence Research and Development Organisation, and also joined hands with the public sector Bharat Electronics Ltd and Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd for offering indigenously-developed software tools for designing, operating and maintaining aerospace and defence products. Jio Platforms will be India’s first company which will be offering such indigenous software tools. This market in India has so far been dominated by French and US defence companies. Sources said Jio Platforms plans to establish a dedicated aerospace engineering centre in Bengaluru in the next two years and recruit over one thousand aerospace engineers for research activities. Jio Platforms’ parent company Reliance Industries Ltd had earlier acquired an 83 per cent stake in Bangalore-based software simulation tools company SankhyaSutra Labs with an investment of $30.85 million. SankhyaSutra Labs has developed Computational Fluid Dynamics-based simulation software for the indigenous manufacturing of various hardware components for aerospace systems. This technology will help Indian companies to develop components, and sub-assembly of western and Russian weapons and platforms. With its new tieups, Jio Platforms will now provide design solutions for fighters, stealth drones, aero-jet engines, etc.

    Delhi liquor scamCBI chargesheets small fish, spares policymakers

    After hundreds of raids and months of investigation and interrogation into the Delhi excise policy which was allegedly framed to favour a few, the CBI has failed to chargesheet any of the policymakers. The chargesheet filed by the agency names two junior officers of the Delhi government. They were involved only in the implementation of the policy after it was notified. They had no role in the drafting of the policy. The new excise policy was drafted by an empowered group of ministers comprising Excise Minister Manish Sisodia and his Cabinet colleagues, Satyendra Jain and Kailash Gehlot. The AAP government was accused of bringing in a policy to favour a handful of friendly businessmen. The Lieutenant Governor of Delhi had raised questions about the process of formulating the policy and its content. The BJP and its ministers in the Union government flagged lacunae in the policy. But the CBI’s chargesheet indicates that it has focussed only on the implementation side of the policy and not on the process of its formulation, which was in the eye of the storm. Sources said that the case made out against the junior officers in the chargesheet is weak, to say the least, and it would collapse like a house of cards in the first hearing itself as they have merely implemented a policy notified by the government. The CBI chargesheet does not provide answers to many questions; it has instead raised more questions.

    Direct action
    Rahul plans Bharat Jodo-2 from Guj to Arunachal

    Gandhi’s political guru Gopal Krishna Gokhale gave him a piece of critical advice when the Mahatma returned from South Africa to take a plunge into India’s freedom movement. He asked Gandhi to travel across India, meet the common people and listen to them to understand the country. Gandhi followed the advice and the rest is history. Rahul Gandhi seems to have taken this leaf out of the Mahatma’s playbook. Sources say he plans to follow up the first leg of the Kanyakumari-to-Kashmir Bharat Jodo Yatra with another one from Gujarat to Arunachal Pradesh — a Porbandar to Parshuram Kund yatra. The unexpected success of the yatra with an overwhelming response across the south and central India has removed whatever doubts and dilemmas he had over the direct contact plan, according to sources. Rahul has repeatedly complained that the mainstream media was not raising issues concerning common people and ignoring the voice of opposition. Sources say the first leg of the yatra has convinced him that direct contact with the people by walking through the villages, towns and cities was more effective than reaching out to them through the media. He feels that the vast swathes of the country comprising Gujarat, UP, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal, Assam, all the way to Arunachal need to be covered too. Sources say there is no doubt over Bharat Jodo-2, only the dates are to be finalised. It can start anytime after the first leg ends in February next year.

    Flying high
    Reliance to provide aerospace solutions with DRDO

    Mukesh Ambani’s technology company Jio Platforms has quietly entered into teaming agreements with several aerospace laboratories of the state-owned Defence Research and Development Organisation, and also joined hands with the public sector Bharat Electronics Ltd and Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd for offering indigenously-developed software tools for designing, operating and maintaining aerospace and defence products. Jio Platforms will be India’s first company which will be offering such indigenous software tools. This market in India has so far been dominated by French and US defence companies. Sources said Jio Platforms plans to establish a dedicated aerospace engineering centre in Bengaluru in the next two years and recruit over one thousand aerospace engineers for research activities. Jio Platforms’ parent company Reliance Industries Ltd had earlier acquired an 83 per cent stake in Bangalore-based software simulation tools company SankhyaSutra Labs with an investment of $30.85 million. SankhyaSutra Labs has developed Computational Fluid Dynamics-based simulation software for the indigenous manufacturing of various hardware components for aerospace systems. This technology will help Indian companies to develop components, and sub-assembly of western and Russian weapons and platforms. With its new tieups, Jio Platforms will now provide design solutions for fighters, stealth drones, aero-jet engines, etc.

    Delhi liquor scam
    CBI chargesheets small fish, spares policymakers

    After hundreds of raids and months of investigation and interrogation into the Delhi excise policy which was allegedly framed to favour a few, the CBI has failed to chargesheet any of the policymakers. The chargesheet filed by the agency names two junior officers of the Delhi government. They were involved only in the implementation of the policy after it was notified. They had no role in the drafting of the policy. The new excise policy was drafted by an empowered group of ministers comprising Excise Minister Manish Sisodia and his Cabinet colleagues, Satyendra Jain and Kailash Gehlot. The AAP government was accused of bringing in a policy to favour a handful of friendly businessmen. The Lieutenant Governor of Delhi had raised questions about the process of formulating the policy and its content. The BJP and its ministers in the Union government flagged lacunae in the policy. But the CBI’s chargesheet indicates that it has focussed only on the implementation side of the policy and not on the process of its formulation, which was in the eye of the storm. Sources said that the case made out against the junior officers in the chargesheet is weak, to say the least, and it would collapse like a house of cards in the first hearing itself as they have merely implemented a policy notified by the government. The CBI chargesheet does not provide answers to many questions; it has instead raised more questions.

  • Look Out Circular against eight accused in liquor scam

    Express News Service

    NEW DELHI:  The CBI on Sunday issued Look Out Circulars (LOC) against eight private individuals named in its first information report on the Delhi liquor policy scam, including Vinay Nair and Dinesh Arora, who are currently abroad.

    The agency is likely to issue LOCs against the remaining seven accused later, including Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia. Well-placed sources said CBI sleuths have parked themselves around the official residence of Sisodia, who is scheduled to fly to Gujarat on Monday.

    Nair, former CEO of Only Much Louder, an event management company that managed several comedy shows like All India Bakchod, has conveyed to the CBI that he is in the US for some personal work and would join the probe once he is back. He is also a member of the AAP. Airports have been put on alert about his and Arora’s arrival.

    Arora and Arjun Pandey, who was formerly associated with a news channel, are alleged close associates of Sisodia, who were allegedly actively involved in managing and diverting kickbacks from liquor licensees for the accused bureaucrats. It is alleged that Radha Industries managed by Dinesh Arora received `1 crore from Sameer Mahendru of Indo-Spirits.

    Besides, Arun Ramchandra Pillai, said to be part of the liquor mafia, allegedly used to collect slush money from Mahendru for onward transmission to the accused public servants through Vijay Nair. Arjun Pandey has once collected about `2-4 crore from Sameer on behalf of Nair.

    The CBI has also summoned Amit Arora, the alleged linkman in the nexus, for its second round of questioning on Wednesday. On Saturday, he was questioned for two-and-a-half hours but he “remained largely quiet”, sources said.

    Arora is a director in 15 companies based in Delhi, Haryana and Punjab. He is a co-founder of a famous Mexican restaurant, Dos Burros, located at DLF Cyber City in Gurgaon. It was Amit Arora and Ankur Mahajan who opened Dos Burros in 2015.

    Sources said Amit Arora, is director in Omlogic Digital Media Pvt Ltd, Aralias Retail Pvt Ltd, VD Restaurants Pvt Ltd, Samannat Retail Pvt Ltd, Buddy (T-1d) Retail Pvt Ltd, Buddy Retail Pvt Ltd, Buddy Hospitality Pvt Ltd, Magnolias Retail Pvt Ltd, Eastman Builders Pvt Ltd, Aralias Hospitality Pvt Ltd, Buddy’s People Resources Pvt Ltd, KSJM Spirits, Blue Smoke Beverages and SAS Alcobev.

    Arora’s partner Ankur Mahajan is based in Jammu. He is director in 10 companies across Delhi, Haryana and Punjab. Most of Mahajan companies are related to automobiles. However, he is associated with Arora in liquor and hospitality business. Arora did not respond to this newspaper’s queries about his links with netas, babus and liquor barons and the money invested in various firms.

    Enough prima facie proof

    Officials probing the case say there is enough prima facie evidence of violation of regulations. They include financial wrongdoings and non-disclosure of material information under the Companies Act besides spreading misinformation under the IT and other Acts

    Financial dealings of the accused in shares, cryptocurrencies and online gaming platforms are under the CBI lens

    The foreign visits and international remittances for at least 50 individuals, including comic artists, businessmen, social media influencers and those linked to the entertainment industry, are also being probed

    Those under the scanner include various individuals and companies having roots in Hyderabad, which managed to get license for sale of liquor in Delhi

    Companies associated with Vijay Nair include Babblefish and Motherswear. Other companies under probe for being associated with Nair, including through his co-directors, are Weirdass Comedy, Motormouth Writers and Rebellion Management

    Ministry of Corporate Affairs is looking into a maze of corporate entities associated with those named by the CBI

    NEW DELHI:  The CBI on Sunday issued Look Out Circulars (LOC) against eight private individuals named in its first information report on the Delhi liquor policy scam, including Vinay Nair and Dinesh Arora, who are currently abroad.

    The agency is likely to issue LOCs against the remaining seven accused later, including Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia. Well-placed sources said CBI sleuths have parked themselves around the official residence of Sisodia, who is scheduled to fly to Gujarat on Monday.

    Nair, former CEO of Only Much Louder, an event management company that managed several comedy shows like All India Bakchod, has conveyed to the CBI that he is in the US for some personal work and would join the probe once he is back. He is also a member of the AAP. Airports have been put on alert about his and Arora’s arrival.

    Arora and Arjun Pandey, who was formerly associated with a news channel, are alleged close associates of Sisodia, who were allegedly actively involved in managing and diverting kickbacks from liquor licensees for the accused bureaucrats. It is alleged that Radha Industries managed by Dinesh Arora received `1 crore from Sameer Mahendru of Indo-Spirits.

    Besides, Arun Ramchandra Pillai, said to be part of the liquor mafia, allegedly used to collect slush money from Mahendru for onward transmission to the accused public servants through Vijay Nair. Arjun Pandey has once collected about `2-4 crore from Sameer on behalf of Nair.

    The CBI has also summoned Amit Arora, the alleged linkman in the nexus, for its second round of questioning on Wednesday. On Saturday, he was questioned for two-and-a-half hours but he “remained largely quiet”, sources said.

    Arora is a director in 15 companies based in Delhi, Haryana and Punjab. He is a co-founder of a famous Mexican restaurant, Dos Burros, located at DLF Cyber City in Gurgaon. It was Amit Arora and Ankur Mahajan who opened Dos Burros in 2015.

    Sources said Amit Arora, is director in Omlogic Digital Media Pvt Ltd, Aralias Retail Pvt Ltd, VD Restaurants Pvt Ltd, Samannat Retail Pvt Ltd, Buddy (T-1d) Retail Pvt Ltd, Buddy Retail Pvt Ltd, Buddy Hospitality Pvt Ltd, Magnolias Retail Pvt Ltd, Eastman Builders Pvt Ltd, Aralias Hospitality Pvt Ltd, Buddy’s People Resources Pvt Ltd, KSJM Spirits, Blue Smoke Beverages and SAS Alcobev.

    Arora’s partner Ankur Mahajan is based in Jammu. He is director in 10 companies across Delhi, Haryana and Punjab. Most of Mahajan companies are related to automobiles. However, he is associated with Arora in liquor and hospitality business. Arora did not respond to this newspaper’s queries about his links with netas, babus and liquor barons and the money invested in various firms.

    Enough prima facie proof

    Officials probing the case say there is enough prima facie evidence of violation of regulations. They include financial wrongdoings and non-disclosure of material information under the Companies Act besides spreading misinformation under the IT and other Acts

    Financial dealings of the accused in shares, cryptocurrencies and online gaming platforms are under the CBI lens

    The foreign visits and international remittances for at least 50 individuals, including comic artists, businessmen, social media influencers and those linked to the entertainment industry, are also being probed

    Those under the scanner include various individuals and companies having roots in Hyderabad, which managed to get license for sale of liquor in Delhi

    Companies associated with Vijay Nair include Babblefish and Motherswear. Other companies under probe for being associated with Nair, including through his co-directors, are Weirdass Comedy, Motormouth Writers and Rebellion Management

    Ministry of Corporate Affairs is looking into a maze of corporate entities associated with those named by the CBI