The Supreme Court has agreed to schedule the curative petitions filed by Manish Sisodia, the former Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi and a leader of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), for a hearing. These petitions seek Sisodia’s release on bail in connection with the Delhi liquor policy case.
Sisodia’s lawyer, Senior Advocate Dr Abhishek Manu Singhvi, brought up the matter before Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and requested an urgent hearing. The Chief Justice has granted the request and agreed to list the case for a hearing.
Last year on October 30, a bench consisting of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and SVN Bhatti dismissed Sisodia’s bail petitions in the cases registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) in relation to the Delhi liquor policy scam.
The controversy surrounding the Delhi liquor policy began with the excise policy introduced by the Government of the National Capital of Delhi in 2021 to increase revenue and reform the liquor trade. However, this policy was later withdrawn amid allegations of irregularities in its implementation. Lieutenant Governor Vinay Kumar Saxena ordered a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation into the matter. The Enforcement Directorate and the CBI claim that the policy, which aimed to privatize liquor trade entirely in the national capital, was manipulated to benefit private entities at the expense of the public treasury. The investigations are ongoing and have led to the arrest of several individuals, including Manish Sisodia.
Sisodia was first taken into custody by the CBI on February 26 in connection with the excise policy case, and later by the Enforcement Directorate on March 9. The CBI’s FIR accuses Sisodia and others of influencing and making decisions regarding the excise policy without the approval of the competent authority, with the intention of giving undue favors to the licensee after the tender process. The agency also alleges that Sisodia obstructed the investigation and refused to cooperate, despite being presented with evidence.
Meanwhile, the Enforcement Directorate claims that there was a conspiracy to grant a 12 percent profit to certain private companies through the implementation of the excise policy, although this was not mentioned in the minutes of the Group of Ministers’ meetings. The agency alleges that this conspiracy was coordinated by Vijay Nair and others, along with the South Group, and acted upon by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia.
Sisodia’s bail applications in both cases, investigated by the CBI and the ED, were rejected by Special Judge MK Nagpal of Rouse Avenue Courts in Delhi on March 31 and April 28, respectively. On July 3, the Delhi High Court also denied bail to Sisodia in the money laundering case related to the previous liquor policy in the national capital. Earlier, on May 30, the High Court had rejected his bail plea in the corruption case registered by the CBI. Sisodia has now approached the Supreme Court to challenge both of these decisions.
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