ED arrests one more person in Delhi excise policy case

New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate made a fresh arrest in the Delhi excise policy-linked money-laundering case and has taken a man identified as Vinod Chauhan into custody, official sources said on Friday.

Chauhan is accused of transferring cash funds, sourced through alleged kickbacks given by the 'South Group', for AAP's election campaign for the Goa Assembly polls of 2022.

This is the 18th arrest in the case by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, his party colleague and former deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia, Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader and former Telangana chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao's daughter K Kavitha, and a number of liquor businessmen and others have been arrested by the federal agency.

The ED mentioned Chauhan's alleged role in the case in an official document submitted before a court in relation to the arrest of Kavitha.

'Statement of one of the staff members of K Kavitha revealed that he collected two heavy bags containing cash from accused Dinesh Arora's office on Abhishek Boinpally's directions and delivered it to Vinod Chauhan,' the agency claimed.

'On another occasion, he collected two such bags containing cash from an address near Todapur, Narayana, New Delhi, and again delivered it to Vinod Chauhan. Chauhan then transferred the same for AAP's election campaign in Goa through the hawala route,' it added.

The agency earlier charged that of the Rs 100 crore bribe money given to AAP by the 'South Group' -- of which Kavitha and some others were members -- Rs 45 crore was used for its Goa Assembly elections campaign.

The 'South Group' also comprised former YSR Congress Party MP Magunta Srinivasulu Reddy, his son Raghav Magunta and Aurobindo Group promoter Sarath Reddy.

Magunta Srinivasulu Reddy has since joined the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and is contesting the Lok Sabha elections from Ongole.

The group was allegedly represented by Abhishek Boinpally, Arun Pillai and Kavitha's alleged auditor Butchibabu while dealing with AAP leaders in this case, the ED has alleged.

The excise case pertains to alleged corruption and money laundering in formulating and executing the Delhi government's excise policy for 2021-22, which was later scrapped.

Delhi Lt Governor VK Saxena recommended a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the alleged irregularities in the policy's formulation and implementation.

Subsequently, the ED registered a case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.