Excise policy: HC asks businessmen Nair, Boinpally to respond to CBI's pleas challenging bail order

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court sought the responses of businessmen Vijay Nair and Abhishek Boinpally on Thursday on the CBI's pleas challenging the bail granted to them in a corruption case related to the now-scrapped Excise Policy 2021-22 for the national capital.

Justice Yogesh Khanna issued notices to Nair and Boinpally, asking them to file their replies to the Central Bureau of Investigation's (CBI) petitions, and listed the matter for further hearing on December 5.

The court also asked them to file their replies to the CBI's application seeking to stay the trial court's bail order.

Nair, the Aam Aadmi Party's (AAP) communication in-charge, and Boinpally, however, are still in custody as they were arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a money-laundering case related to the excise policy.

During the hearing, the judge said, "They are already in custody (in the ED case). Why do you want a stay on that order? What is the hurry? Let them file a reply, then we will see" and deferred the hearing on the CBI's stay application.

Challenging the bail order, CBI's counsel Nikhil Goel contended that every reasoning given by the trial court judge was "perverse".

Goel also informed the court that the statutory time period of 60 days from the date of the first arrest for filing a chargesheet will expire on Friday, when the agency will file the document.

"Regarding these two respondents (Nair and Boinpally), we will be filing the chargesheet by tomorrow. We will not breach the 60-day period," he said.

Representing Nair in the matter, senior advocate Rebecca John said the whole jurisprudence has changed in the country and now, it is jail and not bail.

She said the moment Nair got bail in the CBI case, he was arrested by the ED in the money-laundering case and added, "This is how the agencies work. The agencies act in tandem."

John vehemently opposed each and every ground taken by the CBI to urge the court to set aside the trial court's order granting bail to Nair.

She said her client would file his reply to the CBI's petition.

The CBI's lawyer contended that a huge amount of money was brought to Delhi at the instance of Nair and while Rs 30 crore were received here, it was promised that an amount of Rs 100 to 150 crore would be brought to the capital.

"We have to investigate what had to be done with that cash. We have to see what the person who paid that cash would have gained from it," he said, adding that the promises allegedly made by Nair were included in the actual excise policy.