Savikalpa Thapa, Pune
On July 26 Supreme Court, agreed to hear Former Delhi Chief Deputy Minister Manish Sisodia’s plea on the excise policy case.
The Supreme Court on Sisodia’s prayer for urgent bail due to the hospitalization of his wife on July 28, has ordered CBI and ED to respond. The notice was passed by a bench of Justices B R Gavai, Sanjay Karol, and K V Viswanatha.
Sisodia’s Advocate Vivek Jain said that Sisodia has been jailed for sixteen months and the case hasn’t progressed after the Supreme Court rejected Sisodia’s bail plea on October 2023 permitting him to approach again in case of no progress in trial.
The court had stated the revelation of some material and evidence that tentatively supported a charge under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002. The charge stated the profit of Rs 338 crores made by wholesale distributors in 10 months during the operation of the new excise policy.
CBI had opposed the bail plea and stated “The applicant (Sisodia) enjoys close nexus with the executive, offices, and bureaucrats and his influence and clout is evident. His party colleagues holding high ranks continue to make factually wrong claims in order to influence the investigation and also claim the applicant to be a victim of a political vendetta.”
In addition to Sisodia’s bail plea, he has asked for his petitions in the excise policy related to corruption and money laundering to be revived.
Manish Sisodia (52), former Delhi Chief Deputy Minister was arrested on February 2023 by the CBI for his involvement in a corruption Liquor policy case and later by the Enforcement Directorate for a money laundering case rooted in the CBI FIR. Soon, after his arrest he resigned with Satyendra Jain for their posts in the state cabinet.
The central agencies accused the Aam Aadmi Party and its leaders of receiving Rs 100 crore in the Liquor Policy case and channeling Rs 45 crore to the Goa election campaign in 2022 through hawala channels.