Ranchi, May 20: In a major development in the Jharkhand liquor scam case, the state’s Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) on Tuesday arrested senior IAS officer and former Excise Secretary Vinay Kumar Chaubey along with Joint Excise Commissioner Gajendra Singh. Both officials were remanded to 14-day judicial custody by a special ACB court in Ranchi and sent to Birsa Munda Central Jail in Hotwar.
The arrests came after hours of interrogation by the ACB. Chaubey, currently serving as Principal Secretary in the Panchayati Raj Department, previously held key positions including Excise Secretary and Secretary to Chief Minister Hemant Soren.
This is the first instance in over 15 years that the ACB has arrested a serving senior IAS officer in Jharkhand. The action follows allegations of irregularities in the state’s 2022 excise policy, introduced during Chaubey’s tenure and modelled on Chhattisgarh’s liquor policy.
The ACB raided Chaubey’s residence on Tuesday morning and brought him in for questioning around 11 a.m. Later, Joint Commissioner Gajendra Singh was also summoned and interrogated.
The investigation has revealed links between Jharkhand’s liquor policy and a broader scam that originated in Chhattisgarh. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Economic Offences Wing (EOW) in Chhattisgarh had earlier uncovered a liquor syndicate that manipulated state excise policies to secure lucrative contracts. The same network is alleged to have extended operations into Jharkhand.
According to the ED, changes made to Jharkhand’s excise policy were designed to benefit this syndicate—particularly in awarding liquor supply contracts and implementing a hologram system—leading to substantial financial loss to the state exchequer.
An ECIR was filed by the ED in October 2024, following which raids were conducted at Chaubey’s premises. Subsequently, the Jharkhand ACB began a Preliminary Enquiry (PE), approved by the state government.
Based on the findings, an FIR was registered, and both officials were arrested after medical examinations on Tuesday afternoon. They were produced before the court and sent to judicial custody till June 3.
The case is under further investigation.
