Delhi Liquor Policy Case: Manish Sisodia Not Named In CBI's First Chargesheet

Vijay Nair, the Aam Aadmi Party's (AAP) communications head and Sisodia's close aide, and Hyderabad-based businessman Abhishek Boinpally are among those named in the chargesheet.

Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia. (Image Source: File Photo)

The Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi, Manish Sisodia, is not mentioned in the CBI's first chargesheet in the liquor policy case, news agency PTI reported.

Vijay Nair, Abhishek Boinpally, Sameer Mahendru, Arun Ramchandra Pillai, Mootha Gautham, and two government employees — Kuldeep Singh, a former deputy commissioner of the excise department, and Narender Singh, a former assistant commissioner—have all been charged by the CBI.

CBI files first charge sheet against seven accused in Delhi Excise scam case, say officials

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) November 25, 2022

The Rouse Avenue Court received the charging sheet.

Reacting to the chargesheet, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said: "Manish's name is not in the CBI charge sheet. The whole case is fake. Nothing was found in the raid. 800 officers found nothing in the investigation for 4 months. Manish gave hope of a good future to crores of poor children of the country through the education revolution. I am sorry that a conspiracy was hatched to defame such a person by implicating him in a false case."

CBI चार्जशीट में मनीष का नाम नहीं

पूरा केस फ़र्ज़ी।रेड में कुछ नहीं मिला।800 अफ़सरों को 4 महीने जाँच में कुछ नहीं मिला

मनीष ने शिक्षा क्रांति से देश के करोड़ों गरीब बच्चों को अच्छे भविष्य की उम्मीद दी।मुझे दुःख है ऐसे शख़्स को झूठे केस में फँसा बदनाम करने की साज़िश रची गयी

— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) November 25, 2022

The CBI can submit an additional charge sheet against Manish Sisodia, the deputy chief minister of Delhi, in the upcoming days.

"Arun Ramchandra Pillai used to collect undue pecuniary advantage from Mahendru for onward transmission to the accused public servant through Vijay Nair. Arjun Pandey once collected a huge cash amount of about Rs 2-4 crore from Mahendru on behalf of Nair," the CBI's chargeet was quoted by IANS in its report.

Sisodia is now the primary suspect in the FIR filed by the CBI. Sections 120-B (Criminal Conspiracy) and 477-A (Falsification of Accounts) of the IPC are the subject of the FIR filed by the CBI.

Sisodia is accused of giving liquor industry executives an exemption worth Rs 30 crore. The licence holders reportedly received extensions at their discretion. By breaking excise laws, the policy regulations were created.

Additionally, it claimed that Sisodia and a few other liquor barons were actively involved in handling and transferring the ill-gotten gains obtained from liquor licence holders to the public employees named as defendants in the lawsuit.

"Manish Sisodia, Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi, Arva Gopi Krishna, the then Commissioner (Excise), Anand Tiwari, the then Deputy Commissioner (Excise), and Pankaj Bhatnagar, Assistant Commissioner (Excise) were instrumental in recommending and taking decisions pertaining to the excise policy for the year 2021-22 without the approval of competent authority with an intention to extend undue favours to the licensees post tender," read the FIR, IANS reported.

The CBI has so far nabbed two people in relation to the case.

(With Inputs From Agencies)