Excise Scam: Delhi Court To Pass Order On Manish Sisodia's Bail Plea On Friday

A court in Delhi is likely to deliver on April 28 its order on the bail application of former Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia in a money laundering case related to the alleged Delhi excise policy scam.

Special Judge MK Nagpal, who was scheduled to pronounce the verdict on Wednesday, deferred the matter, saying the order was not ready.

The court had reserved the order after hearing arguments on Mr Sisodia's plea seeking relief claiming that his custody was no longer required for investigation.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) had opposed the application, asserting the investigation was at a "crucial" stage and claiming the senior AAP leader had planted fabricated e-mails to show there was public approval for the policy.

The federal agency had also said it has found fresh evidence of his complicity in the alleged crime.

The court had on March 31 dismissed Mr Sisodia's bail application in the corruption case, being probed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), saying he was "prima facie the architect" in the criminal conspiracy behind alleged payment of advance kickbacks of around Rs 90-100 crore meant for him and his colleagues in the Delhi government.

The court had observed the release of Mr Sisodia, at the moment, will "adversely affect the ongoing investigation".

The CBI and the Enforcement Directorate had arrested Mr Sisodia for alleged corruption in the formulation and execution of the now-scrapped Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22 and for laundering the money so generated.
 

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