In a significant development, IAS officer Vinay Kumar Choubey, entangled in the Jharkhand liquor scam, has been granted bail by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) court. The scam is estimated to involve approximately 100 crore rupees, causing the state government to suffer a revenue loss of around 38 crore. Choubey’s lawyer, Devesh Ajmani, confirmed that the bail was granted based on the ACB’s failure to file a charge sheet within the 90-day deadline.
The court’s bail conditions include a restriction on Choubey’s travel outside the state without prior permission and a requirement to maintain his current mobile number throughout the trial. He is also obligated to provide two personal bonds of 25,000 rupees each. Any travel outside the state requires court approval.
The ACB had summoned Choubey, a 1999-batch IAS officer, for questioning on May 20th in connection with the liquor scam. After extensive questioning, he was presented before the court and subsequently remanded to judicial custody.
The liquor scam is linked to a new excise policy, modeled on the Chhattisgarh system, implemented in Jharkhand in 2022. Despite the policy’s stated aim of increasing government revenue, it led to a loss of over 38 crore rupees. The involvement of a Chhattisgarh syndicate, the use of counterfeit holograms, and the illegal supply of liquor were major factors contributing to the revenue deficit.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted raids in October 2024 on the residences of Vinay Kumar Choubey, Joint Secretary Gajendra Singh, and others in connection with the liquor scam. Following the bail, former Jharkhand Chief Minister Babulal Marandi expressed concerns on social media, alleging that the ACB intentionally delayed filing the charge sheet against Choubey within 90 days to facilitate his bail. Marandi claimed that the former government had orchestrated the arrest of its former secretary to hinder the ED investigation and destroy evidence. He urged the ED to take strong action against those involved in the alleged corruption, emphasizing the theft of public funds. Choubey has previously served as Principal Secretary to Chief Minister Hemant Soren and as the Chief Electoral Officer of Jharkhand.