Delhi Excise Policy Case: Former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, behind bars in the excise policy scam case, today (March 11) said in a veiled attack on the BJP that the government can put him in jail but cannot break his morale. The AAP leader tweeted, ‘Sir, you can trouble me by putting me in jail, but you cannot break my spirits.
Delhi’s Rouse Avenue Court on Friday (March 10) sent the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader to Enforcement Directorate’s remand till March 17 in the Excise Policy case. The court said that he is being remanded in custody for a period of 7 days till March 17 for the purpose of “detailed and comprehensive interrogation and confrontation”. The Enforcement Directorate sought Sisodia’s remand in connection with the Delhi Excise Policy case, saying the act of actively destroying evidence only leads to an inference that Manish Sisodia had made a conscious effort to destroy evidence of the offense of money laundering. Tried
During the hearing, senior advocate Dayan Krishnan, appearing for Manish Sisodia, opposed the ED’s plea seeking 10-day custody of Sisodia. The agency said it is seeking 10-day custody of Manish Sisodia to interrogate him to identify his modus operandi and confront other summoned persons. The ED told the court that Manish Sisodia had bought SIM cards and mobile phones in the name of other people. There was a conspiracy behind making the excise policy. The conspiracy was coordinated by Vijay Nair, along with others and the excise policy was brought in for extravagant profit margins for wholesalers, the ED argued in court. The ED told the court that the 12 per cent margin of wholesale profit margin to private entities was never discussed in the GoM meeting.
Sisodia’s arrest by ED:
Earlier, Sisodia was arrested by the ED on Thursday (March 9) in connection with a money laundering case in the Excise Policy case. He was arrested while in judicial custody in Tihar Jail, where he was lodged. Sisodia was arrested by the CBI in the liquor policy. The matter was on February 26 and he was sent to 14-day judicial custody on March 6. The ED had earlier made another arrest in this case as it took Hyderabad-based businessman Arun Ramachandra Pillai into its custody. The probe agency has also summoned the Indian national. Committee (BRS) MLC to inquire into liquor policy matter today and Kavitha, daughter of Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao.
Sisodia was arrested by the CBI in the ongoing investigation of a case relating to alleged irregularities in the formulation and implementation of the Excise Policy of the National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD). Delhi’s Rouse Avenue Court sent him to judicial custody till March 20.
The excise policy was passed in the Delhi cabinet led by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in 2021 amid the deadly Delta Covid-19 pandemic. Apart from improving the user experience, spurious liquor or non-duty paid liquor in Delhi. The CBI had registered a case against alleged corruption in the Excise Policy of 2021-22. The excise duty policy was later rolled back by the AAP government. Sisodia was among 15 others against whom the CBI had registered an FIR. Excise officials, liquor company officials, dealers, some unknown public servants and private individuals were booked in the case.
It was alleged that irregularities were committed including amendment in excise policy and undue benefits were given to license holders including exemption or reduction in license fee, extension of L-1 license without approval etc.
(with inputs from agencies)
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