Delhi Excise Policy: SC Judge Recuses from Hearing Abhishek Boinpally’s Plea

Supreme Court judge, Justice Sanjay Kumar recused himself on Tuesday from hearing a plea againt the arrest of Hyderabad-based businessman Abhishek Boinpally in a money laundering case linked to the alleged Delhi excise policy case.

When the matter came up for hearing, Justice Sajiv Khanna announced that it would be transferred to another bench, as Justice Kumar chose not to hear the case. The bench directed that the matter be listed before a different bench, which does not include Justice Kumar, in the week commencing August 5. It also ordered that Boinpally’s interim bail, granted due to his wife’s medical condition, be extended until further orders.

Previously, the Supreme Court observed that Boinpally had been in custody for 18 months and directed his release on interim bail for five weeks. Since then, Boinpally’s interim bail has been periodically extended by the apex court. While granting interim bail, the Supreme Court had instructed Boinpally to surrender his passport and restricted his travel to the National Capital Region (NCR) except for visits to Hyderabad.

The Hyderabad based businessman has challenged the Delhi High Court’s July 3, 2023, order that dismissed his petition questioning the legality of his arrest in 2022. He contested his arrest on the grounds of non-compliance with Section 19 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), which outlines the procedure for arrests. Section 19 of the PMLA empowers authorized officials of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to arrest individuals based on material suggesting they have committed an offence punishable under the law.

The Delhi government implemented the excise policy for 2021-22 on November 17, 2021, but abolished it at the end of September 2022 amid corruption allegations. According to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the ED, irregularities occurred in modifying the excise policy, with undue favours extended to license holders.

The money laundering case originated from a CBI FIR filed after Delhi Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena recommended a probe into alleged irregularities in the policy’s implementation. It is claimed that Boinpally participated in secret meetings and was involved in a conspiracy to launder money with another accused, Sameer Mahendru, a businessman dealing in liquor.