A Delhi court on Friday dismissed the bail plea of former deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia in connection to the Delhi excise policy case lodged by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Special Judge M K Nagpal, who had reserved order on the AAP leader's bail plea on March 24, said prima facie Sisodia is the architect of the criminal conspiracy in the matter.
His release, the judge said, may adversely impact the ongoing investigation and "seriously hamper" its progress. "Thus, it is clear from the above discussion that the applicant had played the most important and vital role in the criminal conspiracy and he had been deeply involved in the formulation as well as the implementation of the said policy to ensure the achievement of objectives of the said conspiracy... Thus, as per allegations made by the prosecution and the evidence collected in support thereof so far, the applicant can prima facie be held to be the architect of the said criminal conspiracy," he said.
Last week, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader had sought bail from the city court, saying he was neither a flight risk nor the CBI has found anything incriminating against him in its probe into the alleged irregularities relating to the excise policy, which, he added, was formulated "purely in the normal course."
The CBI has quizzed Sisodia in its custody for seven days so far.
The agency arrested Sisodia on February 26 in connection with alleged corruption in the formulation and implementation of the now-scrapped Delhi liquor policy 2021-22. The court had said it would pronounce its order on Sisodia's bail plea in the CBI case on March 31.
