Delhi excise policy case: Court accepts Vijay Nair's bail bonds, issues order for release

New Delhi: A court here on Tuesday accepted the bail bonds furnished on behalf of former Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) communications in-charge Vijay Nair, who has been ordered to be released on bail by the Supreme Court in connection with the money laundering cases pertaining to the Delhi excise policy case.

Thereafter, the Rouse Avenue Court issued an order to release Nair from Tihar Jail.

On Monday, the apex court allowed Nair's bail plea, noting that he has been incarcerated for around 23 months in connection with the liquor policy case.

The Supreme Court said that incarceration pending trial "cannot be treated as a mode of punishment" and the universal rule of 'bail being the rule and jail being the exception' will be defeated if Nair is kept under custody without trial having commenced.

"The right of liberty guaranteed under Article 21 is a sacrosanct right and needs to be respected even in cases where stringent provisions are incorporated into special enactments," it said.

The SC ordered Nair to be released on bail on furnishing a bail bond of Rs 10 lakh, adding that he will not make any attempt to tamper with evidence or influence the witnesses and will deposit his passport with the trial court.

Before this, the SC allowed bail pleas of senior AAP leader and former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and BRS leader K. Kavitha in the excise policy case.

During the hearing, senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, representing Nair, submitted that both Sisodia and Kavitha, who purportedly acted as "mastermind" (as per the ED) in formulation of the excise policy, did not have the benefit of bail in the predicate offences but Nair has been granted bail in the corruption case and continues to remain behind bars for allegedly committing offences under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

On August 12, the Supreme Court issued a notice to the ED on Nair's plea and asked the federal anti-money laundering agency to file its reply within two weeks.

In July last year, a Bench of Justice Dinesh Kumar Sharma of the Delhi High Court denied bail to Nair. He had moved the Delhi HC challenging a trial court order rejecting his bail application.

Observing that the "allegations are quite serious", Delhi's Rouse Avenue Court had denied bail to Nair and four others – Sameer Mahendru, Abhishek Boinpally, Sarath Chandra Reddy, and Benoy Babu.