Former Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi, Manish Sisodia, will remain in judicial custody until April 17th, as ordered by CBI Judge M.K. Nagpal of the Rouse Avenue Courts. This is in connection with the excise policy case that has been scrapped and is currently being probed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The CBI had requested an extension of Sisodia’s custody, as the investigation is at a crucial stage. On March 31st, the court had dismissed Sisodia’s bail plea.
Judge Nagpal had denied Sisodia bail, stating that he can be held to be the “architect of the criminal conspiracy” based on evidence collected by the probe agency. The court alleged that advance kickbacks of around Rs 90-100 crore were paid to Sisodia and his colleagues in the AAP government. The payment was routed through co-accused Vijay Nair, Abhishek Boinpally, and approver Dinesh Arora. Certain provisions of the excise policy were manipulated by Sisodia to benefit the South liquor lobby and ensure repayment of kickbacks to them.
The court believes that Sisodia’s release may adversely affect ongoing investigations and seriously hamper progress. Evidence collected by the probe agency shows that Sisodia was in contact with the ‘South lobby’ and was ensuring a favorable policy for them at every cost. A cartel was permitted to be formed to achieve a monopoly in the sale of certain liquor brands of favored manufacturers, which was done against the objectives of the policy. Therefore, Sisodia can be held prima facie to be the architect of the criminal conspiracy.
