AAP will be made accused in excise policy case: ED to Delhi High Court while opposing Manish Sisodia bail

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) told the Delhi High Court on Tuesday that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) will be formally made an accused in the Delhi excise policy case. .The submission was made by the ED's special counsel Zoheb Hussain before Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma this afternoon, during arguments to oppose the bail application filed by AAP leader and former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia in the same case. Sisodia's counsel, meanwhile, asserted that he is entitled to be released on bail. "Post dismissal of my bail, three accused have gotten some relief from the Supreme Court. Benoy Babu in ED case. Sanjay Singh, again in ED case and Arvind Kejriwal most recently. There is no threat as far as my running away is concerned. They cannot escape the fact that they did not arrest me before filing of the chargesheet. I have been in custody for 14.5 months," Senior Advocate Mohit Mathur argued. .After hearing detailed arguments, the Court today reserved its judgment in the matter. .Sisodia has been in custody since February 26, 2023. He is being probed by both the CBI and the ED in relation to the Delhi excise policy case.The case involves allegations that Delhi government officials had connived to grant liquor licenses to certain traders in exchange for bribes. The accused officials are alleged to have tweaked the excise policy to benefit certain liquor sellers..A Delhi court had on April 30 rejected Sisodia’s bail plea in both the CBI and ED cases against him, leading to the present plea before the High Court.April 30, 2024, marked the second time that the trial court rejected Sisodia's bail plea. One round of bail applications was earlier rejected in 2023. Sisodia's bail plea in the CBI case was rejected on March 31, 2023. On April 28, 2023, the trial court rejected his bail application in the ED case.The Delhi High Court upheld the trial court orders and the same was upheld by the Supreme Court as well in October 2023.At the time, however, the Supreme Court had said that Sisodia could file for bail again if the trial progressed at a slow pace. He then moved a second round of bail pleas..On who is to blame for delay in trial?Appearing for Sisodia today, Senior Advocate Dayan Krishnan pointed out that the trial against the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader is unlikely to start soon. “The investigation in both cases is still going on. Arrests are still going on in this ... There is absolutely no progress in this trial. In fact, we have not even reached the stage of trial," Krishnan argued. The senior lawyer further contended that some of the applications referred to by the trial court judge as efforts by Sisodia to delay the trial were filed by ED and other co-accused. "I am showing all this to show the complete non-application of mind by the trial court judge. Where does the trial court judge get that all of us are sitting in Tihar jail and conspiring to delay the trial?" Krishnan went on to add. He also alleged that it was the ED that had acted to delay the trial."Right in the middle of proceedings, 500 pages document is sought to be inserted ... Now there is a sixth supplementary complaint but what does that court discuss? That I am filing the applications," Krishnan said. Senior advocate Mohit Mathur made submissions for Sisodia as well, while focusing on the CBI case against him. "Nowhere has it been explained how I have contributed to the delay. I am sorry to say, but if the learned judge is using the words that 'they are acting in concert', is the judge pointing fingers at the counsel or has the judge predetermined his mind that the accused sitting in jail are conspiring? This order (by the trial court) is completely contrary to Article 21 and right to speedy trial," Mathur argued.Representing the ED, special counsel Zoheb Hossain, however, countered that the Supreme Court has not limited the trial court's powers to consider Sisodia's bail plea on merits. "The right to speedy trial will one of the factors that the court may consider. The (Supreme Court) order is not an automatic route to bail merely because time is taken to commence the trial," he added.He also refuted Sisodia's claim that any delay in the progress of the case is attributable to the ED."More than 250 petitions have been filed in the Delhi excise policy case despite there being only 17 arrests. The IO has effectively been there in the court almost every day. No blame can be put to the prosecution," Hossain said. .Sisodia played key role in scam: EDOn merits, the ED's counsel argued that Sisodia played a key role in the alleged Delhi excise policy scam, considering that he was a key person within the AAP. "Manish Sisodia played a key role. He was the deputy CM of Delhi and a key person in the AAP. His actions enabled Indospirits to earn profits of ₹192 crores during the 11 months that the excise policy was in force," Hossain contended. Hossain also submitted that Sisodia is suspected to have destroyed evidence. "He changed the phone on 22 July, 2022, the day LG's request for CBI probe in the case was reported in the media. That phone has not been recovered yet. We have also a statement that says Mr. Sisodia destroyed the old cabinet note to ensure that there is no evidence left behind."Hossein's submissions were supported by the CBI's Special Public Prosecutor Ripudaman Bhardwaj."He (Sisodia) is a powerful man, he can tamper with evidence. His party is in power, they can pressurise the bureaucrats," Bharadwaj added. .[Read live coverage of hearing today]