The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India has released a damning report on Delhi’s now-scrapped excise policy, revealing significant irregularities and financial losses amounting to Rs 2,002 crore. The report, tabled in the Delhi Assembly, highlights preferential licensing, policy deviations, and financial mismanagement under the leadership of then Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia. While the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) defends itself, linking corruption to the previous excise policy, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has launched a scathing attack, accusing AAP of large-scale corruption.
Key Findings of the CAG Report
The CAG’s performance audit on the ‘Regulation and Supply of Liquor in Delhi’ exposes several crucial lapses, including:
- Ignoring expert committee recommendations
- Issuing wholesale licenses to private entities instead of a state-owned body
- Manipulating the excise duty structure
- Poor execution and monitoring of the policy
The report indicates that a group of ministers (GoM), led by Manish Sisodia, made crucial alterations to the expert panel’s recommendations, paving the way for private players to dominate the liquor trade. These modifications allegedly resulted in conflicts of interest, illegal liquor distribution, and cartelization.
Expert Panel’s Recommendations vs. Policy Implementation
The expert committee had strongly advised that the wholesale liquor trade should remain under government control to curb illegal practices. In the past, private wholesalers were accused of facilitating illicit liquor supply using duplicate barcodes.
Even though the GoM acknowledged that private wholesalers were obtaining retail licenses through proxy ownership, they still recommended granting L-1 licenses exclusively to private players. The justification given was that forming a government-controlled wholesale corporation would require time, making it an interim necessity.
Additionally, the expert panel suggested retaining the existing excise duty collection system on a per-bottle basis. However, the GoM altered this approach in favour of an advance collection system linked to license fees, practically disconnecting it from actual liquor sales.
AAP’s Defense: Blaming the Old Liquor Policy
Responding to the CAG report, Delhi Minister Atishi claimed that the report actually exposed corruption in the previous excise policy (2017-2021), rather than the one implemented by AAP.
Atishi alleged that under the old policy, large amounts of liquor were smuggled into Delhi from neighboring states like Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, causing substantial revenue loss. She pointed fingers at the BJP-led governments in these states, insinuating that they profited from this illegal trade.
“The CAG report details flaws and corruption in the excise policy between 2017-2021, not just the new excise policy. Liquor was illegally brought into Delhi from BJP-ruled states, leading to losses. We all know who benefited from this,” she stated.
BJP’s Counterattack: AAP’s ‘Black Deeds’ Exposed
The BJP has strongly criticized AAP in light of the CAG findings, alleging that the party deliberately tweaked the policy for financial gain. Delhi BJP Chief Virendra Sachdeva accused AAP of looting the public and opening liquor stores near residential and religious areas.
“This CAG report exposes the black deeds of Arvind Kejriwal, Manish Sisodia, and AAP. They scammed Delhi, looted taxpayers’ money, and manipulated liquor licensing for their own benefit,” Sachdeva said.
The BJP further pointed out that under AAP’s excise policy (2021-2022), the profit margins for wholesalers were arbitrarily increased from 5% to 12%, allegedly to favour certain entities in exchange for financial kickbacks. The report also suggests that the new policy led to cartelization, allowing ineligible firms to acquire liquor licenses through monetary incentives.
What Lies Ahead?
The CAG report has intensified the political battle between AAP and BJP, with both sides blaming each other for corruption in Delhi’s liquor trade. The revelations have strengthened the BJP’s demand for further investigations and legal action against AAP leaders. Meanwhile, AAP continues to shift the focus toward alleged mismanagement under previous governments.
As the controversy unfolds, legal scrutiny and political pressure will likely increase. The future of Delhi’s excise policies remains uncertain, but one thing is clear—the battle over liquor policy corruption is far from over.
(With inputs from agencies)
