Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Manish Sisodia on Thursday moved the Supreme Court seeking bail in the CBI and ED cases arising out of the alleged Delhi excise policy scam. He has moved the apex court challenging the two orders of the Delhi High Court which had dismissed his separate bail petitions in these cases.
Sisodia, who also held the excise portfolio among many that he handled as the deputy chief minister of Delhi, was first arrested by the CBI on February 26 for his alleged role in the “scam”, and has been in custody since then. He resigned from the Delhi cabinet on February 28.
The high court had on May 30 denied bail to him in the excise policy scam case being probed by the CBI, saying having been the deputy chief minister and excise minister, he is a “high-profile” person who has the potential to influence the witnesses.
On July 3, the high court declined him bail in a money laundering case linked to alleged irregularities in the city government’s excise policy, holding the charges against him were “very serious in nature”. Sisodia was arrested by the ED in connection with the money laundering case on March 9.
The Excise policy was framed on the recommendations of an expert committee and came into force on November 17, 2021. The policy was aimed at increasing government revenues and also ending the liquor mafia’s influence and black marketing. Under the new policy, open bidding was conducted for 849 liquor vends which were awarded to private companies. The city was divided into 32 zones, each allotted a maximum of 27 vends. There were no individual licenses and the bidding was done zone-by-zone.
The controversy over the liquor policy started when allegations started swirling that the AAP government used the policy to extend undue financial favours to the liquor licenses, much after the tenders had been awarded, thus causing huge losses to the exchequer. The CBI is probing allegations that the liquor policy gave undue advantages to private retailers. The CBI also says that corruption in the matter goes to the “highest levels” in Kejriwal’s government. It has claimed crores in kickbacks were paid for favors in the policy and the funds were used by the AAP for its election campaign in Goa last year.
A July 8 report by the Chief Secretary of Delhi last year also showed prima facie violations of the GNCTD Act 1991, Transaction of Business Rules (ToBR) 1993, Delhi Excise Act 2009, and Delhi Excise Rules 2010. Following the report, Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena ordered a probe into the Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22. He recommended a CBI probe on July 22, 2022, into the alleged rule violations and other wrongdoings in the implementation of the excise policy.
The above report alleged that “Minister In-charge of the Excise Department, Manish Sisodia, took and got executed, major decisions/actions”, which were “in violation of the statutory provisions and the notified Excise Policy that had huge financial implications.” In August, the CBI registered an FIR in a special court that mentioned crores were allegedly paid to close associates of Sisodia by Sameer Mahendru, the owner of Indospirits. The liquor trader had been actively involved in irregularities in the framing and implementation of the excise policy.
Former Deputy CM Manish Sisodia’s arrest has been the most high-profile arrest in the matter to date.
(With inputs from agencies)
