Liquor policy lapses led to ₹890 crore loss, PAC tells Delhi assembly

A Delhi assembly report reveals ₹890 crore lost due to mishandling liquor shop licences and another ₹144 crore from a fee waiver, highlighting irregularities in the excise policy.

A report by the Delhi assembly’s public accounts committee (PAC), tabled in the House on Monday, has flagged losses of ₹890 crore due to the failure to re-tender surrendered liquor shop licences under excise policy 2021-22.

Liquor policy lapses led to ₹890 crore loss, PAC tells Delhi assembly

The report also pointed to an additional loss of ₹144 crore arising from a licence fee waiver granted under the excise policy 2021-22.

The findings are based on the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) audit on “Regulation and Supply of Liquor in Delhi”, which was presented in the assembly last year and subsequently referred to the PAC for detailed examination.

Presenting the report, PAC chairman and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Ajay Mahawar said the committee relied solely on the CAG’s audit findings and action taken notes submitted by the excise department, ensuring that ongoing investigations and legal proceedings remain unaffected.

The CAG audit had identified multiple irregularities in the monitoring and regulation of liquor supply in the capital, estimating the total financial implication at approximately ₹2,026.91 crore.

According to the PAC report, a major loss of ₹890.15 crore resulted from the excise department’s failure to re-tender 19 surrendered zones.

“The excise policy 2021-22 was manipulated to favour certain bidders. This could not have happened without collusion between the government and participants,” the report said. It added that the decision to implement the policy was taken at the ministerial level, without adequately taking the excise department into confidence.

The report further said that a waiver for closed vends was approved despite objections from the finance department, resulting in a loss of ₹144 crore.

“Wholesale licences were granted to private entities contrary to earlier recommendations, retail licences were concentrated among a few players, tendering processes were delayed, and surrendered zones were not re-tendered, leading to substantial revenue losses. Waivers were granted despite objections, security deposits were inadequate, and coordination failures with agencies like the DDA resulted in further financial loss,” it said.

During this period, Manish Sisodia served as deputy chief minister and also held the finance portfolio, under which the excise department falls.

The excise policy 2021-22 was eventually withdrawn by the then AAP government after a Central Bureau of Investigation inquiry into alleged irregularities in its formulation and implementation was recommended by then lieutenant governor Vinai Kumar Saxena.

Delhi has been operating under its previous excise regime since September 2022, after the scrapping of the 2021-22 policy amid corruption allegations that led to investigations and arrests of several party leaders, including former chief minister Arvind Kejriwal.