No bail to Sisodia, court says 'evidence speaks volumes about his involvement'

A Delhi court on Friday dismissed the bail application of Aam Aadmi Party leader Manish Sisodia in a money laundering case related to the alleged excise policy scam.

Special Judge M K Nagpal denied the relief to Sisodia, saying the stage was not fit to grant him bail.

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

The judge stated that 'this case of economic offences has serious repercussions upon the general public and society at large as the evidence collected during investigation speaks volumes of his involvement in the commission of the said offence'.

The court also noted that some evidence is also alleged to have surfaced during the investigation to show that some part of the kickback or bribe amount received from 'South lobby' was spent or utilised in connection with the election campaign of the AAP in Goa and some cash payments through hawala channels are alleged to have been sent to Goa for bearing the said expenses and even some fake invoices are alleged to have been created as a cover-up for the cash amounts transferred through hawala channels.

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 also said it had found fresh evidence of his complicity in the alleged crime.

The court had on March 31 dismissed Sisodia's bail application in a 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 that the release of Sisodia, at the moment, would 'adversely affect the ongoing investigation'.

The CBI and the ED had arrested 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.

-- with inputs from ANI