A Delhi court on Friday cleared former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and former Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia in the CBI investigation of the corruption charges linked to the alleged liquor policy scam case. The court chose not to take cognizance of the CBI chargesheet in the case.
Special Judge Jitendra Kumar observed that there were several gaps in the chargesheet that were not backed by evidence. The court also discharged the other 21 accused in the case along with Kejriwal and Sisodia. According to PTI, the judge cited multiple lacunae in the prosecution’s case while issuing the order.
Speaking to reporters after the ruling, Kejriwal said, ‘In the end, unrighteousness and injustice are defeated, and truth alone prevails.’
The CBI had been investigating the alleged corruption in the formulation and implementation of the now-scrapped excise policy under the Aam Aadmi Party government in Delhi.
The investigation began with a report to the lieutenant governor of Delhi from the chief secretary of Delhi in July 2022, which pointed to procedural lapses in the formulation of the excise policy for the financial year 2021-22. The excise policy was implemented in November 2021 but was scrapped in July 2022.
There were two parallel cases filed in connection with the excise policy issue: the CBI case on charges of corruption and the Enforcement Directorate case on charges of money laundering. According to a report in The Indian Express, the judge observed that there was no evidence to support the prosecution’s theory of conspiracy in the case. The ED case is still ongoing.
A global media for the latest news, entertainment, music fashion, and more.
