Manish Sisodia, the former deputy chief minister of Delhi, was refused bail on Friday by Delhi court in the corruption case brought by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in connection with the purported Delhi excise policy case.
The decision was made by Rouse Avenue court’s Special CBI Judge MK Nagpal.
The judge had reserved the bail plea for verdict on March 24.
Sisodia and other Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) members are charged with giving liquor licences to specific merchants in return for bribes.
After Delhi Lieutenant Governor (LG) VK Saxena suggested a CBI investigation based on a report by the Delhi Chief Secretary, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and CBI filed cases in connection to the alleged scam. According to the report, the Deputy Chief Minister broke the law by notifying a policy that had major financial repercussions.
Sisodia was not charged by the CBI, but the investigation against him and some other people was still ongoing. The AAP has refuted the accusations and defended Sisodia’s innocence.
According to Sisodia, the LG approved the policy and the changes made to it, and the CBI is now pursuing the policy choices of an elected administration.
The CBI detained Sisodia on February 26 after questioning him for nearly eight hours. After Sisodia was detained in the case on February 27, a Delhi judge ordered him to remain in the custody of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) until March 4. He was held by the CBI until March 6. He was then taken into legal care after that. He was later detained by the ED in connection with the same scam’s money laundering case and remanded to ED custody on March 10 for a week. March 17th.
When Sisodia challenged his detention, the issue also reached the Supreme Court. The Delhi High Court was instructed to hear his case first by the top court, which declined to accept his argument.
Sisodia filed for bail before the Rouse Avenue Court on March 3.
