Excise case: Delhi court extends interim bail of Sameer Mahendru till Feb 9

New Delhi: A city court on Monday extended the interim bail granted to liquor businessman Sameer Mahendru, arrested in a money laundering case linked to the alleged Delhi excise policy scam, till February 9, noting that his wife will “still remain hospitalised for few days for post operative care”.

Special Judge M K Nagpal, who had granted interim bail to Mahendru, the managing director of liquor distributor Indospirit, on account of his wife's surgery, extended the relief on an application moved by him and directed him to surrender before the jail superintendent concerned by 5 pm on February 9, 2024.

“Keeping in view the totality of facts and circumstances and also keeping in mind the fact that wife of accused will still remain hospitalized for few days for post operative care and she will need some more time to recover from the effects of said surgery at home and will further require the care and support of applicant during the said period, the interim bail of accused is being extended further till February 9,” the judge said.

The judge had granted interim bail to Mahendru in the case related to alleged corruption and irregularities in formulation and implementation of the now-scrapped Delhi excise policy.

The judge noted that during his earlier interim bail period Mahendru did not try to influence the witnesses or tamper with evidence.

According to the prosecution, Mahendru was one of the major beneficiaries of the alleged violations of the excise policy as he was not only running an alcoholic beverages manufacturing unit but was also given a wholesale licence and some retail licences in the name of his relatives.

Because of the alleged irregularities and violations, Mahendru earned a profit of around Rs 50 crore, the prosecution claimed.