Delhi Minister Kailash Gahlot appears before ED in excise policy case

Kailash Gahlot/ X@kailashgahlot

Delhi's Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Kailash Gahlot attended the Enforcement Directorate (ED) office on Saturday for questioning regarding a money-laundering case associated with the scrapped excise policy of the capital, officials reported.

Gahlot, aged 49, represents Najafgarh as an MLA and holds portfolios for transport, home, and law in the Delhi government led by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. Kejriwal himself has been arrested in connection with the case by the federal agency, a report in ANI stated.

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The news agency quoted its sources saying that Gahlot was summoned to provide his statement under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) regarding his involvement in formulating the excise policy. He was part of the Group of Ministers responsible for the policy, along with former deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia and former urban development minister Satyendar Jain.

The ED alleges that the excise policy was leaked to a liquor lobby group, resulting in kickbacks amounting to Rs 100 crore to the AAP and its leaders. Gahlot's involvement is being investigated, including his handling of a single SIM number with changes to its IMEI, the ANI report added.

According to the report, the federal agency has also cited Gahlot's association with AAP's communications in charge Vijay Nair, who lived in a government bungalow allocated to Gahlot. The agency termed this arrangement as a "criminal breach of trust" and has requested the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to take action.

The case involves allegations of corruption and money laundering in the formulation and execution of the Delhi government's excise policy for 2021-22, which was subsequently annulled. Delhi Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena had recommended a CBI inquiry into the matter, leading to the ED registering a case under the PMLA, the report added.

Earlier, AAP leaders Sisodia and Sanjay Singh were arrested by the ED and are currently in judicial custody. The AAP has denied any wrongdoing, with Kejriwal alleging that the BJP-led Centre orchestrated the case to tarnish the party's image.

BRS leader and former Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao's daughter, K Kavitha was also arrested in the case. The federal agency said that she was handling the South lobby group.