Hyderabad-based businessman arrested by CBI in connection with Delhi liquor scam case

His is the third arrest in the excise scam case after businessman and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Vijay Nair and Sameer Mahendru, another businessman.

Abhishek Boinpally and Delhi liquor scam

CBI is looking into transactions done by Robin Distilleries Pvt Ltd, a company in which Abhishek Boinpally is the director, and so is Arun Pillai.

According to the CBI FIR, Arun Ramchandra Pillai, a resident of Kokapet in Hyderabad, used to collect undue pecuniary advantage from Sameer Mahendru of Indo Spirit for onward transmission to the accused public servants through Vijay Nair.

AAP No. 2 Manish Sisodia is the main accused in the case.

Sleuths of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had, on Tuesday, 6 September, conducted raids at six locations in Hyderabad. The six locations included those related to Arun Ramachandran Pillai and Abhishek Boinpally.

The raids were conducted at the offices of Robin Distilleries Pvt Ltd and Robin Distribution LLP, companies linked to Pillai. Raids were also conducted at premises linked to three of his associates, ED sources had told South First.

Andhra-Telangana connection

Apart from Pillai, politicians from both the Telugu states, a big corporate group, and those with interests in the media are said to be among the long list of entities who apparently influenced Delhi’s AAP government into tweaking its liquor policy and, thereby, allegedly causing a loss to the state exchequer.

The corporate group under the scanner is primarily a pharma company which entered the real estate a few years ago. It is said to have paid the earnest money deposit, or EMD, for the allotment of liquor shops in Delhi on behalf of several individuals and smaller firms.

Recently, the promoter of a media group, which owns a language newspaper and a national English channel, was quizzed on 7 October at his house in a posh area in Hyderabad.

The searches on the media group office follows information reportedly given to the ED by Mahendru, managing director of Indospirit Group and the first person to be arrested in connection the alleged scam.

The media group has been drawn into the scam owing to the close links of a senior editorial functionary of the channel with AAP leaders, who reportedly played a role in influencing a change in the liquor policy to suit the interests of certain dealers.

The media group, originally started by a Congress leader, is now close to the ruling TRS ever since it came to power in 2014 and allegedly benefitted from its largesse in the form of advertisements.