Excise policy case: ‘Hawala operator’ accused of transferring Rs 25.5 crore for AAP Goa polls gets bail
After Vinod Chauhan walks out of jail, just two people out of the 40 accused will remain behind bars in relation to the corruption and money laundering cases linked to the excise policy “scam” - Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and businessman Amandeep Singh Dhall.
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Arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), Chauhan was in judicial custody since May. (File photo)A Delhi court Thursday granted bail to Vinod Chauhan, a “hawala operator” who was accused of allegedly transferring Rs 25.5 crore to fund the Aam Aadmi Party’s 2022 Goa assembly poll campaign.
Arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), Chauhan was in judicial custody since May. The central probe agency had earlier alleged that Rs 1.06 crore was seized from his house whose source he did not disclose.
After Chauhan walks out of jail, just two people out of the 40 accused will remain behind bars in relation to the corruption and money laundering cases linked to the excise policy “scam” – Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and businessman Amandeep Singh Dhall.
While arguing for Chauhan’s bail, Senior Advocate Rebecca John had said that many persons who were made witnesses by the ED had the same role as Chauhan; some others who were made witnesses had a graver role in the alleged “scam” than him.
John contended that all Chauhan did was allegedly transmit money. “The ED has let off the accused persons sitting in meetings (while the now-scrapped excise policy was being drafted) discussing profit margins,” she had said.
Citing the recent Supreme Court judgments passed in August which granted bail to former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and Bharat Rashtra Samithi legislator K Kavitha in the excise policy “scam”, John had also argued that it was unlikely that the trial would finish in a reasonable time frame.
Meanwhile, Kejriwal’s plea seeking bail and challenging his arrest in the CBI’s corruption case will be decided by the Supreme Court Friday. As per the agencies, Kejriwal allegedly received “bribe money” from the ‘South Group’ (business persons from South India) in exchange for granting favours to them when the excise policy was being drafted.
The CM was arrested by the ED on March 21. On June 26, he was formally arrested by the CBI. He was granted interim bail by the Supreme Court in the ED’s money laundering case on July 12 but remains in judicial custody in the CBI’s corruption case.
As per the CBI, Dhall played an instrumental role in facilitating and arranging meetings with members of the ‘South Group’, and was also allegedly involved in the recoupment of bribes. Dhall was arrested by the CBI on April 18, 2023.
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