Delhi excise 'scam': Manish Sisodia's judicial custody extended

Delhi excise 'scam': Manish Sisodia's judicial custody extended

A Delhi court on Tuesday extended the judicial custody of jailed AAP leader Manish Sisodia in a corruption case related to the alleged Delhi excise scam.

Special Judge M K Nagpal extended the custody of Sisodia till March 22 after he was produced before the court on the expiry of his remand. The judge passed the order after the CBI counsel claimed that the investigation was at a crucial stage and if released on bail, Sisodia may hamper the ongoing probe or flee from justice.

The judge also reserved the order on the application of the accused raising objections to the commencement of arguments on the framing of charges. The court is likely to pronounce the order on March 22.

The CBI as well as the ED have alleged that irregularities were committed while modifying the Delhi Excise Policy 2020-21, undue favours were extended to licence holders, licence fee was waived or reduced and licences were extended without the competent authority's approval. The beneficiaries allegedly diverted "illegal" gains to the accused officials and made false entries in their books of account to evade detection.

Sisodia was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on February 26, 2023, for his alleged role in the "scam". The Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested Sisodia in a money-laundering case stemming from the CBI FIR on March 9, 2023 after questioning him in Tihar Jail. Sisodia resigned from the Delhi cabinet on February 28, 2023.