'Evidence speaks volumes..': Court denies Sisodia bail in ED's excise policy case
Darpan News Desk IANS, 28 Apr, 2023 10:50 AM
New Delhi, April 28 (IANS) A Delhi court on Friday denied bail to AAP leader and former Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia in connection with the Delhi excise policy case being investigated by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), holding that that the evidence, prima facie, "speaks volumes" of his involvement in commission of the offence.
Special Judge M. K. Nagpal denied the relief, noting the "serious nature of allegations made and role played by Sisodia in the criminal conspiracy, his connection with the activities relating to generation or acquisition and use etc of the proceeds of crime and the oral and documentary evidence collected in support of the same".
"Hence, this court is not inclined to grant bail to the applicant in this case of economic offences having serious repercussions upon the general public and society at large as the evidence collected during investigation speaks volumes of his involvement in commission of the said offence."
The judge also said that the purported medical condition of Sisodia's wife was not a reason to grant him bail in this case. Additionally, he stated that it was impossible to rule out the potential of Sisodia influencing key witnesses in the case.
The judge noted that the alleged offence against Sisodia was a "serious economic offence of money laundering" and that he has not been accused of committing the offence in his personal capacity, but rather in his official capacity as a public servant overseeing the Excise Ministry and serving as Delhi's Deputy Chief Minister.
"The seriousness or gravity of the offence and its nature or category, the capacity of applicant in which it was committed, the manner of its commission and also certain other factors like impact of the offence as well as the possible impact of release of applicant on society etc. are the factors which go against the applicant and force this court to decide against his release on bail in the present case," the judge said.
Judge Nagpal pronounced the order on Friday after having reserved it on April 18.
The court had, a day before, extended Sisodia's judicial custody by two weeks in the case. On Thursday, the same court extended Sisodia's judicial custody till May 12, in the case being probed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
The ED had earlier submitted before the judge that Sisodia had planted fabricated emails to show that there was public approval for the policy.The directions to send these pre-drafted emails were given to Zakir Khan, Chairman of Delhi Minorities' Commission, who then asked his interns to send the emails, the ED claimed.
The probe agency had also said that the 60 days given to complete the investigation against Sisodia are not over yet. It said that it has found fresh evidence indicating Sisodia's involvement in the alleged scam, and the investigation is at a crucial stage.
In a statement here, SAD General Secretary Parambans Singh Romana said the truth about the Delhi model of school education had been "exposed" yet again with the national survey on Pupil Teacher Ratio (PTR) showing that Delhi had the worst PTR next to only Bihar in the country.
The police said that a reward of Rs 25,000 was also declared for any information leading to his arrest. The accused has been identified as Salman alias Suleman, a resident of Jahangirpuri.
On February 7, the court took cognisance of the charge sheet filed by the Delhi Police against Poonawala and posted the matter for its scrutiny on February 21. On January 24, the police had filed the charge sheet in the case which contains over 6,000 pages and the court had extended Poonawala's custody for 14 days.
In a statement here, the Chief Minister apprised the Governor that he has came to know about his letter through the media, and all issues raised by Governor are the issues related to jurisdiction of the state. And for these issues, he is accountable to the 3 crore Punjabis who have elected him with a whopping mandate, Mann stressed.
India’s government on Friday withdrew its appeal to citizens to mark Valentine’s Day next week not as a celebration of romance but as “Cow Hug Day” to better promote Hindu values. The appeal had attracted widespread criticism from political rivals and on social media.
In an appeal, the Chief Minister said the firing incidents at Behbal Kalan and Kotakpura in 2015 along with the sacrilege of Guru Granth Sahib in Bargari had bruised the psyche of every human being especially the Sikh community.
