Delhi Excise Scam: HC Grants Interim Bail to Raghav Magunta on Medical Grounds

The Delhi High Court on Tuesday granted interim bail to Raghav Magunta, the son of YSR Congress Party MP Magunta Srinivasulu Reddy, in a money laundering case related to the alleged Delhi excise policy scam, citing medical grounds.

A single-judge bench Justice Dinesh Kumar Sharma granted the relief but also directed Magunta to appear before ED officials at their Chennai or Delhi office whenever called.

The court specified that he must remain in Chennai and report to ED officials every Tuesday and Friday at 4 pm.

Additionally, Magunta is prohibited from leaving India without permission from the trial court and must surrender his passport before the said court.

The court clarified that the grant of bail on medical grounds to Magunta should not be considered a precedent for other cases.

The Case

According to the ED, Raghav Magunta is a significant figure in the conspiracy of cartelisation and kickbacks related to the Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22 scam. The agency alleges that Raghav, along with various others, hatched this conspiracy, and through his proxy person, Prem Rahul Manduri, he held 32.5 percent stakes in Indo Spirits, which possessed the L1 wholesale license. As part of the South group, Raghav was involved in a conspiracy in which approximately ₹100 crore was paid to the Aam Admi Party (AAP).

Raghav Magunta is the owner of liquor manufacturing units operating under the name of Enrica Enterprises Pvt Ltd, located in Chennai. The ED asserts that he also directly controlled two retail zones named Magunta Agro Farms Pvt Ltd, which violates the Excise Policy 2021-22, as a manufacturer is not permitted to hold either retail or wholesale operations.

Last year, both the ED and the CBI registered cases alleging irregularities in modifying the Excise Policy, extending undue favours to license holders, waiving or reducing the license fee, and extending the L-1 license without proper authority approval. The beneficiaries allegedly diverted the “illegal” gains to the accused officials and attempted to evade detection by making false entries in their books of accounts.