"I might have to stay in jail for a few months, but I am not worried about it at all," Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said in a letter to Delhiites before he left for the CBI office for questioning in the Delhi excise policy case on Sunday. He said false allegations have been levelled against him and he is confident that he will be cleared of all charges in court. Before leaving for the CBI headquarters, Sisodia sought the blessings of his mother and led a roadshow from his residence at Mathura Road to Raj Ghat.
Later in the evening, he was arrested by the CBI in connection with alleged corruption in the formulation and implementation of the now-scrapped excise policy relating to the sale of alcohol.Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal shared Sisodia's letter on Twitter."These people are going to arrest me today. They have levelled false allegations against me. I am sure all these cases will be dismissed in court, but it might take some time. It is possible that I might have to stay in jail for a few months. But I am not worried about it at all," Sisodia said in his letter, without naming anyone.
"We are followers of Bhagat Singh. He embraced capital punishment for the sake of the country. Going to jail is a small thing," he said. The deputy chief minister had made similar remarks while addressing party workers at Rajghat.In his message, Sisodia also spoke about his wife, who he said had supported him throughout his journey, but would be left alone after his arrest. "My wife has been very supportive. We have seen many ups and downs. I was working as a journalist and earning well and getting promotions regularly. My career was doing well. Then one day, I quit my job and joined Arvind Kejriwal and started working in jhuggis. The security in life ended but my wife always supported me and gave me strength," he said.
He said his wife has not been keeping well and their only son is in Canada, which means she will be left alone after his arrest. He requested AAP workers to take care of her while he is away. Sisodia, who also holds the education portfolio, asked the children of Delhi to study hard."I will get to know in jail if you will not study or if you bother your parents. That day I will not have food. Do you want your Manish chacha to suffer? Please study with all your heart. I think it will take seven-eight months. I will be back in seven-eight months," he said in an emotional appeal to students.
Talking fondly about Kejriwal, Sisodia said he has received a lot of affection from him. In his message to Kejriwal, he said, "Don't worry about me. You keep on working for the country like this. I feel it is my good fortune that I am going to jail for the country." Sisodia claimed Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scared of the AAP's rising popularity in the country."Modiji is scared of Arvind Kejriwal. He is not scared of Rahul Gandhi or any other leader, but only Arvind Kejriwal. They want to trample the AAP and Kejriwal. As the AAP's popularity will grow, the number of false cases against us will also rise," he said.
Concluding his message, Sisodia said the AAP is the only ray of hope for the country and in the future, it will sound the BJP's death knell and free the country from its "atrocities". "In the coming time, the AAP will make the country number one," he asserted. Sisodia was arrested by the CBI after nearly eight hours of questioning as his answers were not satisfactory, officials said. The AAP leader arrived at the CBI headquarters around 11:12 am for the second round of questioning. The AAP leader, the accused number one in the CBI FIR, was first questioned on October 17.
