New Delhi (IANS) | Former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia told the Delhi High Court on Thursday that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) did not have any evidence to show his involvement in the alleged Delhi Excise Policy case, and he was being targeted so that he could be jailed. Can be kept CBI Judge M.K. Nagpal (Rouse Avenue Court) had on April 5 rejected Sisodia’s bail plea.
Senior advocate Dayan Krishnan, appearing for the AAP leader, told a division bench of Justice Dinesh Kumar Sharma that barring Sisodia, all other accused in the CBI case have been released on bail.
He also said that the probe agency has no evidence to show that the AAP leader tampered with the evidence.
Krishnan argued on behalf of Sisodia, he says I do not cooperate. This can never be a ground for denying me bail. I don’t need to cooperate, confess or answer questions the way they want me to. The Constitution allows me to answer the way I want.
Senior advocate Mohit Mathur, another counsel for Sisodia, said the CBI figures are only on paper and no evidence of money transaction has been found.
Mathur argued on behalf of Sisodia, he has made me the main mastermind of this alleged conspiracy through Vijay Nair. But Vijay Nair was arrested in September 2022 and released in November even before the charge sheet was filed. I was called for questioning for the second time in February 2023. Therefore, all these allegations about me that I am capable of influencing witnesses are completely false.
The High Court, after hearing the matter in detail, listed the matter for further hearing on April 26.
Additional Solicitor General (ASG) S.V. Raju, CBI’s counsel will present his case in the next hearing.
Justice Sharma also asked the ASG to explain how the excise policy operates and the probe agency may call its investigating officer to explain to him.
While denying bail to Sisodia, CBI judge Nagpal had said that Sisodia could prima facie be held to be the mastermind behind the criminal conspiracy.
He had remarked that advance bribe payments of around Rs 90-100 crore were meant for Sisodia and his associates in the AAP government.
The order said that at this stage of the investigation, the court is not inclined to release Sisodia on bail as his release may adversely affect the ongoing investigation and its progress would also be seriously hampered.
–IANS
