The Supreme Court on May 19 granted bail to businessman Anwar Dhebar, who is accused in a money laundering case linked to the alleged ₹2,000 crore Chhattisgarh liquor scam. Dhebar is also the brother of former Raipur Mayor, Aijaz Dhebar.
A bench comprising Justice Abhay S. Oka and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan noted that the maximum punishment for the offence is seven years. The Court emphasized that there is "no possibility of the trial commencing in the near future."
“Following the law laid down in the case of Senthil Balaji v. Deputy Director, the appellant is entitled to be enlarged on bail,” the Supreme Court stated.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) had opposed the bail plea, alleging that Anwar Dhebar was the main figure in the liquor syndicate with significant political influence. However, Justice Bhuyan remarked, “These are all allegations,” and Justice Oka questioned the prolonged custody without trial, saying, “How long will he continue in custody without trial?”
The bench noted that Dhebar had already spent 80 days in custody in connection with an earlier ECIR, which was later quashed. In the present case, he was arrested on August 8, 2024. Since then, the ED has filed one original and three supplementary complaints.
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“So far 03 supplementary complaints have been filed in addition to the original complaint. 40 witnesses have been cited. The investigation is in progress. In the predicate offence, there are 450 witnesses and the investigation is in progress. Cognizance has not been taken. Therefore, there is no possibility of the trial commencing in near future.”
The Court highlighted that no other criminal cases were pending against Dhebar except this predicate offence. Referring to its ruling in Senthil Balaji v. Deputy Director, the Court allowed the bail.
The Court ordered that Dhebar be produced before the special court within a week. He is to be released on stringent conditions after hearing the ED. Additionally, he must surrender his passport, attend court regularly, and cooperate with the proceedings.
Earlier, on April 8, 2024, the Supreme Court had quashed a previous ED case against Dhebar, Anil Tuteja, Arun Pati Tripathi, and others, stating there was no predicate offence. A fresh case was registered the next day based on an FIR filed by the Chhattisgarh Police in January 2024. Dhebar was arrested in this second case in August 2024.
The Court had earlier granted bail to co-accused Anil Tuteja and Arun Pati Tripathi after the High Court quashed the trial court's cognisance order.
Case no. – SLP(Crl) No. 3592/2025
Case Title – Anwar Dhebar v. Directorate of Enforcement
