The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) arrested Delhi’s deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia on Sunday in connection with alleged irregularities with an old liquor policy in a major but not entirely unexpected escalation between the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in the city and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at the Centre.
Sisodia is the second, and the senior-most yet, minister of the elected government to be arrested by a federal agency, a move that he and chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said was in the offing as part of a political plot against the party.
Sisodia “gave evasive replies and did not co-operate [with] the investigation despite being confronted with evidence to the contrary. Therefore, he has been arrested,” said a statement issued by CBI spokesperson RC Joshi.
Joshi said Sisodia was summoned to answer questions “evaded by him during his examination on October 17 and further questions relating to his incriminating role based on evidence collected during investigation of the case”.
The deputy CM will be produced before a special CBI court at Rouse Avenue on Monday.
“Manish is innocent. His arrest is dirty politics. There is a lot of anger among the people due to Manish’s arrest and everyone is watching. People understand everything and they will respond to this,” said CM Kejriwal in a tweet following the announcement of the arrest.
The likelihood of Sisodia’s arrest later in the day had prompted him and the AAP to stage a show of strength in the morning, with a visit to Rajghat and a roadshow to the CBI headquarters near Lodhi Road.
Shortly before arriving at the CBI office for questioning, the deputy chief minister said false cases were being lodged against leaders of AAP as Prime Minister Narendra Modi was “afraid” of Kejriwal.
“Conspiracies are being hatched by the CBI and ED [Enforcement Directorate] and false cases being lodged against our party leaders because PM Narendra Modi is afraid of CM Arvind Kejriwal’s rising popularity. As AAP grows further, BJP will continue to slap false cases on us. We are not afraid of the CBI, ED and their false cases,” Sisodia said, claiming that people were starting to regard the AAP as an alternative to the BJP.
“I can go to jail several times and I am not afraid. When I left my job as a journalist, my wife supported me. Even today, my family is standing by my side. My workers will take care of my family if I get arrested,” Sisodia told reporters at Rajghat, where he paid his respects to Mahatma Gandhi.
Later, a number of AAP leaders were detained near the CBI headquarters for protesting the summons.
An official in CBI, who asked not to be named, denied the arrest was planned.
“During any interrogation, if an accused or suspect is not cooperative and there is enough documentary evidence and statements against the person, as is in this case against Sisodia, arrest is done for securing police custody so that further rigorous questioning can take place,” said this officer.
A second officer cited added: “there is sufficient evidence in the form of WhatsApp chats, call data records (CDR), emails, statements by key Delhi government officials including Sisodia’s secretary C Arvind, disclosures by wholesalers and retailers regarding crucial conspiracy meetings, hotel records, files of excise department and bank statements of several suspects to establish charges against him (Sisodia) and others”.
The arrest was made under sections of Indian Penal Code pertaining to criminal conspiracy and fraud, as well as the prevention of corruption act.
“The law is taking its course and that is why Sisodia has been arrested. There is nothing surprising in this. Thousands of rupees liquor scam was done in Delhi and from the arrests made so far, it was believed that Manish Sisodia would also be arrested eventually,” said Ramvir Singh Bidhuri, BJP leader and leader of opposition in the assembly.
AAP leaders hit back, saying the proceedings in court will clear Sisodia’s name. “BJP says Manish Sisodia did a scam of ₹10,000 crore. Where is this money? Was this money found at Sisodia’s house, bank or any other place? Nothing was found even after one year of investigation” said AAP leader Atishi.
“When Manish Sisodia’s case will go to court, BJP government will not be able to prove corruption of even one rupee,” she added.
Sisodia, who has 18 portfolios, is the most high-profile sitting opposition minister to be arrested by a federal agency, after Satyendar Jain, the city’s health minister.
Sisodia’s arrest is connected to the excise policy in which the agency claims kickbacks were paid. The policy was rolled out for the 2021-22 financial year in November 2021, marking the exit of the government from retail sales of alcohol and allowing private companies to bid for licenses. The objective, the Delhi government said, was to improve the buying experience for citizens by allowing market competition to raise standards.
But the policy was scrapped when Delhi’s lieutenant governor VK Saxena asked for an investigation, citing a report by the chief secretary who alleged irregularities. AAP and the Capital’s elected government have rejected the charges, alleging it to be a ploy by the BJP-controlled Union government to target its rival.
In three charge sheets – one by CBI and two by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) the deputy CM has not been named, although he is the primary accused in the first investigation report (FIR).
People familiar with the latest round of interrogation in excise probe said they are focusing on alleged influence of a “South Group”, which involved several businessmen, politicians and middlemen, who were part of the formulation and implementation of the now-scrapped policy.
A CBI officer, who didn’t want to be named, said a detailed questionnaire has been prepared for Sisodia’s questioning focusing on policy related meetings and claims made by multiple accused and witnesses, with which the deputy CM needed to be confronted.
The “South Group” allegedly comprises YSR Congress MP Magunta Srinivasulu Reddy, his son Raghav Magunta, Sarath Reddy (promoter of Aurobindo Group), and K Kavitha (daughter of Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao), businessman Sameer Mahendru and it allegedly controlled nine out of 32 retail liquor zones in Delhi.
CBI earlier this month arrested Butchibabu Gorantla, a former chartered accountant of K Kavitha. Gorantla allegedly met several accused persons in Delhi and Hyderabad and was one of the key persons to influence the policy in favour of the members of “South Group”.
CBI and ED have claimed Sisodia is the architect of the now-scrapped excise policy, in which ₹100 crore kickbacks were allegedly paid to favour certain liquor manufacturers and wholesalers. ED has also claimed that part of kickbacks, which was meant for AAP leaders, was used by the party for Goa assembly election campaign last year.
Sisodia, who also holds the finance portfolio, was originally summoned last Sunday but he sought deferment of his questioning citing the ongoing Budget exercise, following which the CBI asked him to appear on February 26.
This was the second round of questioning of Sisodia after the agency registered a case on August 17 last year. He was quizzed on October 17 last year.