Manish Sisodia, former Deputy Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader, was denied bail by a Delhi Court on Friday. This decision was made in relation to a money laundering case that involves the implementation of the 2021-22 excise policy in the national capital. The order was given by Special Judge MK Nagpal at Rouse Avenue Courts. During the hearing, Sisodia was represented by Senior Advocate Dayan Krishnan, while Enforcement Directorate was represented by Zoheb Hossain.
At present, Sisodia is in judicial custody for cases registered by both the CBI and ED. On March 31, he was denied bail by a special judge in the CBI case, and his bail plea in that case is currently pending before the Delhi High Court. The court had previously remanded him to ED custody, stating that he had played a key role in the formulation and implementation of the excise policy at every stage. The ED has asserted that Sisodia’s arrest in the money laundering case was necessary, claiming that the excise policy was put in place as part of a plot to grant a 12% profit margin to specific private companies in the wholesale business. Additionally, the agency argued that this condition was not documented in the minutes of the Group of Ministers (GoM) meetings.
Furthermore, the agency alleged that Vijay Nair and a group from the South worked together to organise a conspiracy that granted excessive profit margins to wholesalers. The ED contended that Nair acted on behalf of the Delhi Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister.
According to the ED, Sisodia destroyed 14 phones, but only two were recovered, which amounts to evidence destruction. Additionally, it was revealed that the AAP leader used SIM cards and phones that were registered under other people’s names. On February 26, Sisodia was arrested by the CBI after being interrogated for over 8 hours. He was named as an accused in the FIR. The probe agency’s case suggests that there were irregularities in the formulation and execution of the 2021-22 excise policy.
According to the CBI, Sisodia was detained due to his uncooperative behaviour during the investigation, despite being presented with evidence, and giving vague responses. A chargesheet was submitted on November 25, 2022, in relation to the matter. According to the CBI’s FIR, Sisodia and other individuals played a key role in “recommending and making decisions” about the 2021-22 excise policy “without the approval of competent authorities, with the intention of granting undue favours to the licensee post-tender.”
Written by, Vaishnavi goel, B.A.LL.b(6th sem), Punjab School Of law, Punjabi university, Patiala
