Delhi excise 'scam': Delhi High Court asks Enforcement Directorate to respond to liquor businessman Sameer Mahendru's bail plea

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Tuesday sought the response of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on a plea by liquor businessman Sameer Mahendru seeking bail on medical grounds in a money laundering case related to alleged irregularities in the now-scrapped Delhi excise policy.

Justice Dinesh Kumar Sharma asked the ED to file a status report as well as a verification report on the claims made by Mahendru regarding his health.

Mahendru is already on interim bail granted by a trial court on medical grounds and has to surrender on May 1.

Besides regular bail, he has also sought extension of the interim bail by at least 12 weeks, saying that the tentative date of his surgery is May 5 and post-surgery care is required.

His counsel submitted that the businessman was granted interim bail on February 28 and it was later on extended by the trial court.

He said the accused was still in bad shape and he has placed on record the latest medical documents.

On February 28, the trial court granted interim bail to Mahendru on medical grounds for a period of 30 days after he claimed he was suffering from various ailments.

According to the prosecution, the accused was allegedly one of the major beneficiaries of the violations of the excise policy as he was not only running an alcoholic beverage manufacturing unit but also given a wholesale licence along with some retail licences in the name of his relatives.

Because of the alleged irregularities and violations, Mahendru made around Rs 50 crore, the prosecution claimed.

The ED has registered an enforcement case information report (ECIR) against Mahendru under the relevant provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The money laundering case stems from a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) FIR.

According to the CBI and the ED, irregularities were committed while modifying the excise policy and undue favours were extended to licence holders. The Delhi government implemented the policy on November 17, 2021, but scrapped it at the end of September 2022 amid allegations of corruption.

Former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia is also an accused in the matter.

On March 9, the ED arrested Sisodia at Tihar jail, where he was lodged in connection with the case being probed by the CBI. The CBI arrested the Aam Aadmi Party leader on February 26.