The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has opposed former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia’s plea for interim bail in the Supreme Court on the ground of his wife’s ill-health.
The Central agency said the “ailments of the wife of the petitioner [Mr. Sisodia] are not new”.
The CBI said Mr. Sisodia had himself said the treatment had been going on for the past 23 years.
The affidavit said Mr. Sisodia had even withdrawn his bail application from the Delhi High Court, saying his wife’s condition was stable.
Mr. Sisodia has been in custody since February 2023 in connection with an alleged scam concerning the liquor excise policy. The Bench is hearing two separate pleas for interim bail. The CBI and the Enforcement Directorate have both opposed the pleas.
The CBI alleged he was the “kingpin and architect of the conspiracy” and his influence and clout disentitled him to any parity. The probe agency said Mr. Sisodia was now fully aware of the line of further investigation, the larger conspiracy and the role of excise officials in Punjab. “He will tamper with evidence and influence witnesses,” the affidavit said.
In an earlier hearing, senior advocate A.M. Singhvi, for Mr. Sisodia, had said the AAP leader’s wife was suffering from a “progressive disease”.
He was arrested by the CBI on February 26 for alleged corruption in the formulation and implementation of the now-scrapped Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22 following several rounds of questioning.
In March, the trial court had dismissed his bail plea saying he was prima facie the “architect” of the alleged scam and had played the “most important and vital role” in the criminal conspiracy related to alleged payment of advance kickbacks of ₹90 crore-100 crore meant for him and his colleagues in the Delhi government.
