Virendra Gahwai, Bilaspur. In the liquor scam case in Chhattisgarh, suspended officer of Excise Department Arunapati Tripathi was heard in the High Court on Criminal Revision. The court issued a notice to EOW seeking a reply in two weeks.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested Arunapati Tripathi, a senior officer of the Excise Department and former MD of the liquor distribution company CSMCL in May 2023 in the liquor scam case. After interrogation, the special court of ED was sent to jail. Tripathi had filed a bail application in a special court, which was rejected. After this, he also filed a bail petition in the High Court and the Supreme Court. On not getting relief, Tripathi filed a bail application in the High Court, on which he was granted bail.
It is noteworthy that in the case of Tripathi, EOW also registered a case with cognizance. The department had taken action without the permission of the government. Tripathi challenged it in the High Court and presented a Criminal Revision. It said that in such cases under Section 9, permission of the government should be taken first. Justice Arvind Kumar Verma was heard in a single bench today. After the hearing, the court issued a notice to EOW and summoned the reply in two weeks. The next hearing in the case is expected in the week starting from March 17.