Arrested Delhi Deputy CM Sisodia Resigns After SC Dismisses His Plea In Liquor Policy Case; Satyendar Jain Quits Too

Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia and his cabinet colleague Satyendar Jain on Tuesday (28 February) resigned from their posts in the Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal led Delhi cabinet, reports ANI.

This comes after the Supreme Court on Tuesday (28 February) declined to hear Sisodia's plea regarding his arrest by the CBI at the present time and recommended him to exploit other legal methods that are accessible.

AAP leader Sisodia, currently under CBI custody, moved the apex court on the same day in an attempt to secure bail in the excise policy case.

The Supreme Court bench, consisting of Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justice P S Narasimha, initially suggested he should approach the Delhi High Court to apply for bail and to get the FIR quashed, as the case has provisions under the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC).

Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Sisodia's counsel, cited the case of arrest of journalist Arnab Goswami and the case against another journalist Vinod Dua. However, the apex court said these cases stood on a different footing.

After a grilling session that lasted eight hours, Sisodia was arrested on Sunday by the CBI which is looking into possible irregularities in the abrogated Delhi excises law.

On Monday, the special court brought him before them and approved the CBI's proposal for a five-day detainment of Sisodia.

The court stated that Sisodia had not provided legitimate information to support the supposedly compromised substantiation against him. It was thus found essential for the CBI to detain him for a valid and fair inquiry, allowing honest responses to any questions imposed.

The culmination of the tense day was Sisodia's arrest; he had travelled to Rajghat beforehand and let it be known that he could potentially be jailed for up to seven or eight months, requesting AAP workers to look after his family in his absence.

More than six months back on 8 July, Delhi's Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar gave the Lieutenant-Governor's Office a submission revealing missteps in the policy's execution, and affirming that post-bid benefits had been awarded to the licensees.

Later, Vinai Kumar Saxena, the Lieutenant-Governor, wrote to the Central Ministry of Home Affairs proposing an inquiry from the CBI.

Following a storm of controversy surrounding the intention to fully privatise Delhi's alcohol industry, a policy initiated by the AAP government, Sisodia proclaimed on 30 July last year, that they would revert to their initial excise structure, and permit only government liquor shops to operate.

On 17 August, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) registered a First Information Report concerning the matter, and two days later they conducted a search of 21 locations in Delhi, including the house of Sisodia.

Satyendar Jain was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a money laundering case on 30 May last year.

The arrest came after assets worth Rs 4.81 crore linked to the Aam Aadmi Party minister's family were attached by the ED in a disproportionate assets case in April this year.