- The ED has claimed in its charge sheet that Manish Sisodia received kickbacks worth ₹2.2 crores through his close aide.
- This is the first time that an agency probing the alleged irregularities in the excise policy has quantified and directly linked a bribe amount to Sisodia.
- The AAP rejected the allegation, saying in a statement, “This is completely fake. ED chargesheet is complete fiction.
- ED, citing Amit Arora’s statement, said that the first installment of ₹1 crore was paid in the second week of April 2021, and the rest ₹1.2 crore was paid in the next 2-3 months.
- Sisodia and the AAP have dismissed the probe as a politically motivated witch-hunt.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has claimed in its charge sheet that the former deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia received kickbacks worth ₹2.2 crores through his close aide Dinesh Arora from businessman Amit Arora to favour the latter in the now-scrapped Delhi excise policy 2021-22.
This is the first time that an agency probing the alleged irregularities in the excise policy, the Central Bureau of Investigation is conducting a parallel probe, and has quantified and directly linked a bribe amount to Sisodia.
The AAP rejected the allegation, saying in a statement, “This is completely fake. ED chargesheet is complete fiction. ED first implicated Sanjay Singh and then withdrew their charges formally in court. Then they said that Manish Ji destroyed 14 phones, which were subsequently found in ED custody. Likewise, this is also a completely false charge.”
The ED charge sheet said that the funds generated in cash by Amit Arora’s firm were used to pay kickbacks to Sisodia. ED, citing Amit Arora’s statement, said that the first installment of ₹1 crore was paid in the second week of April 2021, and the rest of the money amounting to ₹1.2 crore was paid in the next 2-3 months from cash sales proceeds of same companies.
The ED, citing Amit Arora’s statement, also said that before the commencement of business under the 2021-22 excise policy, when all retailers faced a lot of issues in opening stores or vends, Dinesh Arora arranged a meeting with Sisodia in September 2021. This sent a message across the industry that Dinesh Arora was the person acting on behalf of AAP for the excise matters. Dinesh Arora also used to mention that he was collecting 6% kickbacks on behalf of Sisodia.
The Delhi government’s 2021-22 excise policy aimed to revitalize the city’s flagging liquor business. It aimed to replace a sales-volume-based regime with a license fee-based one for traders and promised swankier stores, free of the infamous metal grilles, ultimately giving customers a better buying experience. The policy also introduced discounts and offers on the purchase of liquor, a first for Delhi. The plan, however, came to an abrupt end, with lieutenant governor VK Saxena recommending a CBI probe into alleged irregularities in the regime. This ultimately resulted in the policy being scrapped prematurely and being replaced by the 2020-21 regime, with the AAP alleging that Saxena’s predecessor sabotaged the move with a few last-minute changes that resulted in lower-than-expected revenues.
On February 26, CBI arrested Sisodia after the agency said that it had recovered several incriminating pieces of evidence in the case, and to conduct a fair investigation, his custody was required. After spending 7 days in CBI custody, Sisodia was sent to Tihar Jail by Delhi’s Rouse Avenue Court, from where he was arrested by ED after a nine-hour-long interrogation on March 9.
Sisodia and the AAP have dismissed the probe as a politically motivated witch-hunt.
(With inputs from agencies)
