ED arrests Amit Arora, Director of Buddy Retail Pvt Ltd in Delhi Excise case

 In connection with the alleged Delhi Excise Policy scam, ED has arrested Amit Arora, Director of Buddy Retail Pvt Ltd, sources said. Arora is expected to be produced before the special court later today and ED will seek his custody to question him in connection with its ongoing probe into Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22 money laundering case.

Arora’s name is mentioned in both the ED and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) cases as accused along with Dinesh Arora, another director of Buddy Retail Pvt Ltd. Other accused named are Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, the then Excise Commissioner Arva Gopi Krishna, Deputy Commissioner Anand Tiwari and Assistant Commissioner Pankaj Bhatnagar.

Manoj Rai, a former employee of Pernod Ricard; Amandeep Dhal, director of Brindco Sales; authorised signatories of Mahadev Liquors Sunny Marwah, Arun Ramchandra Pillai and Arjun Pandey are some more accused in the case.

The move comes days after the agency filed its first chargesheet before court in Delhi excise policy money laundering case naming liquor businessman Sameer Mahandru as one of the accused. According to the agency, it has undertaken 169 search operations so far filed after taking cognisance of a CBI FIR which was registered on the recommendation of the Delhi Lieutenant Governor.

In October, the ED had raided nearly three dozen locations in Delhi and Punjab following the arrest of Sameer Mahendru, Managing Director of Delhi’s Jor Bagh-based liquor distributor Indospirit Group, in the case. The CBI too filed its first charge sheet in the case early this week.