CBI arrests businessman Vijay Nair in Delhi Excise Policy case

The CBI on Tuesday arrested AAP leader and businessman Vijay Nair in connection with the Delhi Excise Policy scam case in which Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia is also an accused, officials said.

Nair, who was abroad for quite some time, was called for questioning at the CBI headquarters on Tuesday, they said.

Sources said Nair was arrested for his alleged role in ''cartelisation'' and ''conspiracy'' related to alleged irregularities in the allocation of liquor licenses in the national capital.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) condemned the arrest of its communication in-charge Nair and alleged that it was part of the BJP's ''ongoing attempt'' to crush the AAP and obstruct its campaign in Gujarat where assembly polls are due to be held this year.

The CBI FIR has alleged that Arjun Pandey, an associate of Sisodia, had once collected about Rs 2-4 crore in cash from liquor businessman Sameer Mahendru on behalf of Nair, former CEO of Only Much Louder (OML), an entertainment and event management company.

''Source further revealed that Arun Ramchandra Pillai used to collect undue pecuniary advantage from Sameer Mahendru of IndoSpirit for onward transmission to the accused public servants through Nair," it claimed.

The CBI in its FIR has alleged that ''close associates'' of Sisodia -- Amit Arora, Director of Buddy Retail Pvt. Limited based in Gurgaon, Dinesh Arora and Arjun Pandey -- were ''actively involved in managing and diverting the undue pecuniary advantage collected from liquor licensees'' for the accused public servants.

The CBI has invoked IPC section related to criminal conspiracy and provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act in its FIR filed against 15 entities.

Nair, a well-known name in entertainment circuit, had started OML as a management company for Indie bands but gradually shifted focus towards comedy scenes with noted some noted standup artists, comedy collectives and live music shows.

Nair's leadership at OML came under controversy including #MeToo allegation which was strongly denied by him. It drew criticism of promoting a culture of sexism at Only Much Louder which was denied by the company in a detailed rebuttal.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)