The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Monday filed a chargesheet against Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and others in the national capital's Rouse Avenue Court in connection with the now scrapped Delhi Excise Policy Case.
The CBI filed chargesheet following an investigation into the alleged misuse of the Delhi excise policy, under which substantial financial misconduct allegations have surfaced.
Earlier, AAP supremo Kejriwal was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate(ED) on March 21 from his residence in Delhi in a money laundering case linked to the alleged excise policy scam.
Later, the Supreme Court granted him interim bail. However, Kejriwal still continues to be in jail as the CBI had arrested him in another matter related to Delhi Excise Policy case in June this year.
It was after the Rouse Avenue Court allowed CBI to arrest Kejriwal in the case after the agency's plea to examine the AAP supremo in court.
The probe agency has charged Kejriwal as "one of the primary conspirators" in the excise policy case.
CBI calls Kejriwal 'Sutradhaar' of Delhi Excise Policy: The CBI has called Kejriwal the "sutradhaar" (facilitator) of the excise policy case. The Delhi high court, which was hearing Kejriwal's plea seeking regular bail, reserved its order.
Before the court, CBI has reportedly said after Kejriwal was arrested, the probe agency got evidence. The agency has also informed the court that many people started to come forth, including AAP workers. The agency has maintained before the court that it couldn't have completed its probe without arresting the AAP chief.
The probe agency also has told the court that even after the charge sheet was filed, the CM could influence witnesses directly or indirectly.
On the other hand, Kejriwal's lawyer, Abhishek Manu Singhvi, told the court that the agency hadn't interrogated the chief minister since his arrest, except when he was in the police remand.
He said the agency has no direct evidence against Kejriwal and hasn't recovered anything from home.
Singhvi said that Kejriwal was not the only one who was involved in the formulation or the implementation of the excise policy but it was an institutional decision involving at least 50 bureaucrats, including the L-G and nine ministries.
What Is The Liquor Policy Case? Kejriwal was arrested in connection with an ongoing liquor policy case, under which the ED has previously alleged that through the excise policy implemented by the Delhi Government in November 2021, the AAP was involved in money laundering.
The new policy reduced the legal drinking age to 21, replaced government-owned liquor stores with private entities, and implemented separate registration criteria for different liquor brands based on pricing and sales performance outside Delhi. Additionally, the annual liquor vending license fee was increased significantly from Rs 8 lakh to Rs 75 lakh. The new policy also granted licenses to 849 private vendors through competitive bidding.
The policy was later scrapped after violations were reported.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) alleges that the excise policy was part of a conspiracy to provide a 12 per cent wholesale business profit to certain private companies and was a coordinated effort by Arvind Kejriwal, Manish Sisodia, Vijay Nair and others.
Two other AAP leaders Manish Sisodia and Sanjay Singh have previously been arrested in connection with this case. BRS Leader K Kavitha too has been accused of "conspiring" with Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal and senior AAP leader Manish Sisodia to "get favours" in the Delhi excise policy formulation and implementation. She is expected to remain in ED custody till March 23.
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