Excise Policy Case: Delhi High Court’s Denial of Sisodia’s Bail Is ‘Tight Slap’ On AAP Government, Claims BJP

The Delhi High Court’s decision to refuse bail to AAP leader Manisha Sisodia in the excise policy fraud case was described by the BJP as a “tight slap” on the Delhi government and a rejection of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s assertion of “kattar imandaar” on Monday.

The court on Monday denied Sisodia bail in a money laundering case connected to suspected anomalies in the city government’s excise policy, stating that the accusations against him were “very serious in nature.” This was another blow for Sisodia.

Shehzad Poonawalla, the national spokesman for the BJP, responded to the court’s decision by saying, “Once again today, Arvind Kejriwal and his corrupt government has received a tight slap from the Delhi High Court as it has refused to give any relief to Manish Sisodia in the PMLA case.”

With this, Kejriwal’s ‘kattar imaandar’ (dead honest) certificate has also been revoked. The real issue at hand right now is how long Kejriwal would continue to play the victim and vendetta cards, the politician remarked. On March 9, Sisodia was detained by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with the now-deleted Delhi excise strategy for 2020–21 case.

The BJP urged Kejriwal to stop using the “victim card” and asked him to explain why the policy’s commission was raised from 2.5% to 12.5%, wholesale liquor was given to private players, and companies on the blacklist were permitted to participate in the tendering process with a Rs 144 crore waiver.

The top court also said that the case required a “different approach” due to the allegations of a pervasive conspiracy that resulted in a significant loss of public cash. After Sisodia was detained by the organisation on March 9 in connection with the matter, Chief Minister Kejriwal referred to him as “kattar imandaar” and said that Sisodia was no longer his deputy.