The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Monday produced Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia before a court here, which sent him to the probe agency’s custody till March 4 in a corruption case related to excise policy. Special Judge M.K. Nagpal, after hearing the arguments of the CBI and Sisodia’s lawyers, reserved his order for the time being.
The CBI had requested the court to hand over the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader to its custody for five days. The CBI had arrested Sisodia on Sunday evening in connection with alleged corruption in the implementation of the excise policy for 2021-22 (now cancelled). Earlier, during the hearing in the court which lasted for over an hour, Sisodia’s counsel said that the (then) Lt Governor had approved changes in the excise policy, but the central probe agency is after the elected government.
Sisodia claimed that there was no evidence against him and opposed the CBI’s request for his remand. Sisodia’s lawyer appearing for him told the court, “I am the Finance Minister. I have to present the budget… What changed yesterday that the Finance Minister has to be detained? Will he no longer be available? Or was this arrest done for an ulterior motive? This case is an attack on an individual and an institution.
“It is a fit case for denial of remand,” he said. He argued that Sisodia served as a member of the Delhi government and therefore cannot be held responsible for the decision, nor on that decision. question can be raised. At the same time, the counsel for the investigating agency argued that there is a need to interrogate the arrested Deputy Chief Minister in custody.
The CBI said that Sisodia claimed that he had no role in the case, but the probe revealed that he personally took the decisions. Sisodia’s counsel opposed the probe agency’s request for custodial interrogation, contending that the CBI has said that they had changed their mobile phones, but that was not an offence.
The lawyer said that the policy was implemented after taking suggestions from the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi and since it required consultations, there was no scope for conspiracy. “I tried to keep everything open-ended,” he said. Earlier, the CBI brought Sisodia to the Rouse Avenue court amid tight security. A large number of security personnel were deployed inside and outside the court premises.
