On Thursday, Manish Sisodia, former Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi and a leader of the Aam Aadmi Party ( AAP ), filed a bail plea in the Delhi High Court concerning the money laundering and corruption cases linked to the liquor policy.
The division bench, comprising Acting Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Manmeet PS Arora, stated that if the necessary documents are submitted by 12:30 PM today, the case will be scheduled for tomorrow.
The plea was presented by Advocate Rajat Bhardwaj, who urgently requested the bail pleas to be listed for hearing.
The appeal challenges the dismissal of his second bail request by the trial court in both the Central Bureau of Investigation ( CBI ) and Enforcement Directorate ( ED ) cases on April 30. The trial court denied him bail in the money laundering case, rejecting his argument that the case’s progress has been sluggish. The court noted that any delays were primarily due to reasons attributed to Sisodia himself.
Manish Sisodia’s attempts to secure bail have been unsuccessful in the trial court, Delhi High Court, and even the Supreme Court in both the ED and CBI cases. The Supreme Court, while dismissing his bail plea previously, had advised him to file a fresh bail plea before the trial court if the case continues at a slow pace.
Manish Sisodia was initially arrested by the CBI and ED on February 26 and March 9 last year, respectively. The CBI’s FIR alleges that Sisodia and others played a role in making decisions about the 2021-22 excise policy without proper approval, allegedly favoring certain licensees after the tender process.
The ED, on the other hand, claims that the excise policy was part of a conspiracy to benefit private companies and alleges Sisodia’s involvement in coordinating this scheme. Special Judge MK Nagpal, who initially rejected Sisodia’s bail applications, was subsequently transferred, leading to Sisodia’s appeal to higher courts for bail.
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