Manish Sisodia named as accused for first time in Delhi liquor scam

Mangalore Today News Network

New Delhi, April 25, 2023: Former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia has been named as an accused in the CBI chargesheet in the excise policy case for the first time. The Aam Aadmi Party leader’s name was included in the supplementary chargesheet filed by the central agency on Tuesday.

 

The CBI has also named Hyderabad-based CA Buchi Babu Gorantla, liquor trader Amandeep Singh Dhall and Arjun Pandey in the supplementary chargesheet under IPC sections 120-B (criminal conspiracy), 201 and 420 besides provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act.

In its chargesheet filed before a special CBI court in New Delhi, the agency said the probe is kept open to look into larger conspiracy and role of other accused in the case.

It is alleged that the Delhi government’s excise policy for 2021-22 to grant licences to liquor traders favoured certain dealers who had allegedly paid bribes for it, a charge strongly refuted by the AAP. The policy was later scrapped.

Manish Sisodia was arrested for alleged corruption in the formulation and execution of the excise policy and for laundering the money so generated. The CBI contends that liquor companies were involved in framing of the 2021 excise policy, for which kickbacks were paid by a liquor lobby it dubbed the "South Group".

The CBI had named seven people including AAP’s communication in-charge Vijay Nair in its first chargesheet in November.

On April 16, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was questioned for nearly nine hours by the CBI as a witness in the excise policy case, amid protests by his party as the AAP chief claimed that the allegations of scam were false and the agency was acting at the BJP’s behest.

Courtesy: India Today