Sisodia moves Delhi HC for interim bail, states wife's ill-health
Darpan News Desk IANS, 03 May, 2023 11:58 AM
New Delhi, May 3 (IANS) Former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister and AAP leader Manish Sisodia on Wednesday moved the High Court seeking interim bail in the now-scrapped excise policy case being probed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
Sisodia has sought for interim bail on the ground of illness of his wife.
Justice Dinesh Kumar Sharma, while listing the plea for consideration on Thursday with his regular bail plea, also asked the CBI to try make efforts to file the status report in the matter on the same day itself.
Last week, Special Judge M.K. Nagpal of the Rouse Avenue Court had extended Sisodia's judicial custody till May 12.
The court had also directed the CBI to supply an e-copy of the supplementary charge sheet to Sisodia.
Claiming that the probe agency had filed an incomplete investigation in the case, Sisodia's counsel had urged the court to grant default bail to his client.
"Prima facie it seems the agency is saying that further investigation regarding me is required/pending. Therefore, we reserve the right to file an application for statutory bail," counsel had said.
The probe agency had filed the charge sheet on April 25.
On April 26, the CBI had told the Delhi High Court that the excise policy scam it is probing, is a "deep-rooted conspiracy" and that it is not as simple as depicted.
Jusge Nagpal had on April 29 also extended Sisodia's custody till May 8 in the case registered by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
A day before, the judge had denied bail to Sisodia holding that the evidence prima facie "speaks volumes" of his involvement in commission of the offence.
Officials of the central jail have not confirmed his release prematurely. Sidhu on May 20, 2022, surrendered before a court in Patiala in a 1988 road rage case that had led to the death of a 65-year-old man.
Out of total 36 people who died in the heart wrenching incident, the youngest victim was a two-year-old boy, Hitansh, while the eldest one was an 80-year-old woman identified as Jayvanti Devi, according to police. Most of the victims were women.
The Punjab Cabinet led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Friday gave nod for hiking the compensation due to unseasonal rains by 25 per cent per acre. A decision to this effect was taken by the Council of Ministers at its meeting held here.
The court had, on March 20, sent him to judicial custody till April 3. Judge Nagpal observed that the payment of advance kickbacks of around Rs 90-100 crore was meant for him and his other colleagues in the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government.
The Delhi government has called an emergency meeting after the Covid cases spiked on Wednesday. A total of 300 new Covid infections in the last 24 hours were recorded in the national capital, which is a rise over Tuesday's 214 cases, as per the Delhi government health bulletin.
Asserting that the situation was likely to worsen in the coming days, Badal said the summer season had not started but the state power utility had started imposing power cuts of as much as eight hours per day even in cities.
