Personally addressing the Rouse Avenue Court while opposing the CBI’s plea that sought his custody in connection with the Delhi excise policy case, Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal denied media reports that claimed he had blamed Deputy CM Manish Sisodia for the alleged scam, LiveLaw reported.
“A false narrative is being spread by CBI sources in the media that I have put the blame of liquor policy scam on Manish Sisodia. I have not made any such statement blaming Manish Sisodia or any other person. I had said that Manish Sisodia is innocent. Aam Aadmi Party is innocent. I am innocent. But CBI’s plan is to malign us in the media. Please record that CBI sources have spread fake news in the media,” he reportedly said.
The court orally remarked that what media reports is often “taken in pieces”.
Kejriwal claimed the agency’s idea is simply to sensationalise and make headlines.
“Idea inka ye hain ki front page pe ye headline ho ki Kejriwal ne apna thikra Manish Sisodia ke sar par foda… They are sensationalising the issue. It needs to be clarified. Ye top headline hongi saare newspapers ki. Inka maqsad hi sensationalise karne ka hain,” he said, according to LiveLaw.
However, CBI counsel, advocate DP Singh, opposed the submissions, stating that the agency has no “source”. “No source said anything. And I argued on facts. We are not the sources. It shouldn’t come like that,” Singh said, according to LiveLaw.
The court then remarked that media tends to “pick up one line” and “it is very difficult to control media that way”.
The central probe agency had produced Kejriwal before the Rouse Avenue Court after the Delhi High Court stayed his bail. The matter was heard by vacation judge Amitabh Rawat. The CBI has formally arrested Kejriwal in the Delhi excise policy case and sought five-day custody of the AAP national convener.
The court has reserved its order in the matter.
Meanwhile, Kejriwal’s wife Sunita has alleged the whole system is trying to ensure that her husband does not come out of jail and that this is similar to a “dictatorship” and “emergency”.
In a post on X, Sunita said her husband got bail on June 20 in the Excise policy-linked money laundering case but the ED immediately got a stay.
“The very next day, the CBI made him an accused. And today he was arrested. The whole system is trying to ensure that the man does not come out of jail. This is not law. This is dictatorship, this is emergency,” she said.
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