Highlights
- CBI searched 31 locations across 7 states, UTs in the country
- The AAP and the BJP on Friday crossed swords over the CBI raids
- BJP levelled corruption allegations in the excise policy of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) govt
Delhi Liquor Policy scam: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Friday registered a case against Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, others including the then commissioner (EXCISE), then Deputy Commissioner (Excise), then Assistant Commissioner (Excise), all of GNCTD, Delhi; 10 liquor licensees, their associates & unknown others on a reference from MHA (GOI) related to alleged irregularities in framing and implementation of the excise policy of GNCTD, Delhi and conducted searches at 31 locations across 7 states, UTs in the country. It was further alleged that irregularities were committed including in the modifications in Excise Policy, extending undue favours to the licensees, waiver/reduction in license fee, the extension of L-1 license without approval, etc. It was also alleged that illegal gains on the count of these acts were diverted to concerned public servants by private parties by making false entries in their books of accounts. Searches were conducted at 31 locations including Delhi, Gurugram, Chandigarh, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Lucknow, and Bengaluru which, so far, have led to the recovery of incriminating documents/articles, digital records etc. The probe is underway. The AAP and the BJP on Friday crossed swords over the CBI raids with the former claiming the Modi government is "scared" of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's "growing popularity" and the agency was acting on "orders from above". The BJP hit back with corruption allegations in the excise policy of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Delhi, as the raids by the CBI in the alleged excise scam raised the political temperature ahead of the upcoming Assembly polls in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh.
- After 15 hours of CBI raid, Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia said that he has done nothing wrong and his entire family cooperated with the central agency. "We have not done anything wrong, the whole family has cooperated in the investigation. My personal laptop, mobile phone and some have been taken by CBI. No one has been called for questioning yet."
- According to reports, the physical search is over at Manish Sisodia's residence. Emails are being dumped and seizure memos of seized papers and electronic evidence are being filled. After completing the dump and seizure memo, the CBI search will be completed.
- Taking to Twitter, Kejriwal attached the front page of the New York Times featuring Sisodia along with a news story "Our Children are worth it; overhaul of public schools in Delhi has students clamouring to enroll", and said the CBI raids come on a day the biggest newspaper in America published an article praising the Delhi education model. He further said there is no need to panic, but asserted the universe was with them.
- "The real issue here is the growing popularity of Arvind Kejriwal and his Delhi model of governance in education and healthcare." Chadha, who is also an MP, said when raids were conducted at Kejriwal's residence earlier, they found four mufflers.
- The BJP, on the other hand, launched a scathing attack on Sisodia with Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur saying the deputy CM has become an "excuse minister" after the latter claimed he was "paying the price for honesty". "Today, the issue is of liquor licenses and the corruption in it. The minister concerned is Manish Sisodia. He reversed the excise policy the day the probe was handed over to the CBI. Why was this step taken? Because, there was corruption in the issuance of liquor licenses," Thakur alleged in a statement.
- Sisodia had said the agency probe against him was to derail his work to improve education facilities in the national capital.
- The CBI raided the homes of Sisodia and 30 other locations in connection with the alleged corruption in the implementation of Delhi's Excise Policy. The searches by the CBI covered seven states and union territories.
- Delhi Lt Governor VK Saxena last month recommended a CBI probe into alleged irregularities in the implementation of Delhi's Excise Policy 2021-22. He suspended 11 excise officials in the matter. Sisodia had also demanded a CBI probe into alleged irregularities in the policy.
- As a CBI team reached Sisodia's residence in the morning, the deputy chief minister took to Twitter to welcome the CBI, saying conspiracies will not break him nor deter his resolve to continue to work for providing good education.
- "Manish Sisodia is the best education minister of Independent India. Today the largest US newspaper NYT printed his photo on the front page. And today Modi ji sent CBI to his house. How will India progress like this?" Mann said in a tweet in Hindi.
(With inputs from PTI)
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