The Delhi High Court is set to hear on March 9 a plea filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against a trial court order discharging AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal, former Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and 21 others in the 2022 Delhi excise policy case.
According to the causelist on the High Court’s official website, the matter is listed before a single-judge Bench of Justice Swarnakanta Sharma.
The CBI has filed a criminal revision petition challenging the detailed order of the Rouse Avenue Court, which declined to frame charges against all 23 accused. The trial court held that the prosecution failed to establish even a prima facie case warranting trial.
On February 27, Special Judge (PC Act) Jitendra Singh, in an order spanning over 1,100 paragraphs, concluded that the case presented by the CBI was “wholly unable to survive judicial scrutiny” and stood “discredited in its entirety.”
Court Findings And Political Reactions
After examining extensive records and nearly 300 prosecution witnesses, the trial court ruled that no material emerged to raise even a ‘grave suspicion’ against the accused. It observed that subjecting them to trial without legally admissible evidence would amount to a ‘manifest miscarriage of justice’ and an abuse of the criminal process.
The case relates to the Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22 introduced by the AAP-led government, later scrapped amid corruption allegations. The CBI had alleged the policy was tailored to benefit certain private liquor entities, including the ‘South Group,’ in exchange for upfront bribes routed for electoral purposes, leading to undue favours and losses to the exchequer.
The court, however, rejected the agency’s ‘theory of an overarching conspiracy,’ stating the record showed a consultative process followed prescribed procedures.
Following the discharge, Kejriwal termed the case ‘false and fabricated’ and said ‘Satyamev Jayate.’ Sisodia was seen consoling him outside the court.
BJP MP Manoj Tiwari said celebrations within the AAP may be premature, alleging destruction of SIM cards and questioning the policy’s withdrawal.
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