Delhi excise scam: Court seeks ED's reply on accused Arun Pillai's interim bail plea

A court in New Delhi on Monday sought the Enforcement Directorate's response on an application by Hyderabad-based businessman Arun Ramchandra Pillai, arrested in a money laundering case related to the alleged Delhi excise scam, seeking interim bail on the ground of his wife's medical condition. Special Judge M K Nagpal, who had on December 7 granted five-day custody parole to the accused on the grounds of his wife's health, issued notice to the ED and directed it to file its reply by December 15, when the court will hear arguments on the application.

The application, filed by advocate Nitesh Rana sought a 12-week interim bail, claiming the accused's wife was required to undergo surgery and that the accused needed to be "physically present with his wife for moral support" for undergoing the medical procedure.

The ED had claimed that Pillai is a close aide of BRS MLC and former Telangana chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao's daughter K Kavitha and an alleged frontman of the liquor cartel "South Group".


It has been alleged that the "South Group" had paid kickbacks amounting to around Rs 100 crore to the Aam Aadmi Party to gain a larger share of the market in the national capital under the now-scrapped Delhi excise policy for 2021-22.

Pillai was arrested by the ED on March 6. The ED alleged that Pillai represented the "South Group" in meetings with other accused when the excise policy was being formulated and implemented.

The Delhi excise policy was scrapped in August last year and the Delhi lieutenant governor subsequently asked the CBI to probe the alleged irregularities and corruption involving government authorities, bureaucrats and liquor traders, among others.