NEW DELHI: Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena has recommended a CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) probe into Delhi government’s Excise Policy, 2021-22, over alleged violations of rules and procedural lapses.
The move came after the report by Delhi Chief Secretary filed earlier this month, showing prima facie violations of GNCTD Act 1991, Transaction of Business Rules (ToBR)-1993, Delhi Excise Act-2009 and Delhi Excise Rules-2010, officials said.
The new Excise policy 2021-22 was implemented by the Kejriwal government from November 17 last year under which retail licences were given to private bidders for 849 vends across the city divided into 32 zones. The policy drew sharp criticism from political opponents and residents across the city.
Responding to the development, Aam Aadmi Party said that Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s growing reputation across country has threatened the central government. The Excise Policy 2022-23 was approved by the Delhi Cabinet on May 5. It is yet to be approved by the lieutenant governor.
मोदीजी केजरीवाल जी से बहुत डरते हैं। मोदीजी से लोगों का मोहभंग हो गया है।अब केजरीवाल जी से ही देश को उम्मीद है। जैसे जैसे “आप” का देश भर में प्रभाव बढ़ेगा, अभी और बहुत झूठे केस होंगे। पर अब कोई जेल केजरीवाल जी और “आप” को नहीं रोक सकती
— Manish Sisodia (@msisodia) July 22, 2022
भविष्य “आप” का है, भविष्य भारत का है
PM is rattled by the growing popularity of Arvind Kejriwal in India & abroad.All Central Agencies & LG r witch hunting Minsters & leaders of AAP.
— Saurabh Bharadwaj (@Saurabh_MLAgk) July 22, 2022
We were expecting it after our Punjab success. They want people to believe the AAP is also corrupt like BJP & others.
However, BJP leader Manjinder Singh Sirsa has welcomed the probe, saying that he had recently filed a complaint with the CBI accusing the Delhi government of levying an excise policy that “extended wrongful gains and favour to liquor wholesalers… at the cost of state’s revenue”.
BJP National Spokesperson RP Singh also claimed that favours were given to Indospirit Beverages Pvt. Ltd, Indospirit Dist. Pvt. Ltd, Indospirit Mktng Pvt. Ltd, M/s Khao Gali Rest Pvt. Ltd by the state government. “All these companies were controlled by Sameer and Geetika Mahandru and both of them were blacklisted by Excise Dept. in 2019,” he said.
@ArvindKejriwal @msisodia
— RP Singh National Spokesperson BJP (@rpsinghkhalsa) July 22, 2022
Is it true ? That on 14 July Cabinet meeting of Delhi was called without a cabinet note & Cabinet waived of
₹ 144 Cr. of the Liquor mafia.
Meanwhile, Congress also supported the move. Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee president Ch. Anil Kumar said that what Delhi Congress has been alleging from the outset that the Arvind Kejriwal Government has sold Delhi to the liquor mafia after taking huge money in kickbacks, has been validated by the Lt. Governor of Delhi, who has ordered a CBI enquiry into the new Liquor Policy, for unravelling the corruption behind the liquor deal. He said that Delhi Congress had given a written complaint to the Delhi Police Commissioner seeking a probe into the corruption behind the new Liquor Policy, but no action was taken.
Kumar, welcoming the Lt. Governor’s decision to order a CBI probe, said that Delhi Minister Satyender Jain, who has been in jail for the past two months for a money laundering case, was the front man of Kejriwal’s corrupt deals, while Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and Transport Minister Kailash Ghelot, will be the next to go to jail.
He said that Kejriwal was using these Ministers as his fund collectors, but the CBI probe will bring out the truth, and catch the real culprit behind the liquor deal to sell Delhi to the liquor mafia, who are now controlling the trade without any scruples, to make Delhi “Nashe Ki Rajdhani”.
Kumar said that the CBI probe should unravel whether the new liquor policy in Delhi had any connection with the Punjab Assembly elections, where Kejriwal had promised to end the reign of the liquor and drug mafia, but both are thriving after the Aam Aadmi Party came to power there, which is being remote-controlled by Arvind Kejriwal.
Kumar said that Kejriwal has admitted that after Satyender Jain, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia will be the next to be targeted by the enforcement authorities, but the big question is whether the CBI probe will knock at the doors of the real culprit behind all the corrupt deals in Delhi, i.e Arvind Kejriwal himself?