Former Delhi's Deputy Chief Minister and senior AAP leader Manish Sisodia enjoyed his first tea of an "independent morning" with his wife on Saturday after walking out of Tihar Jail following 17 months of imprisonment in the liquor policy case. In his first post on X after being granted bail on Friday by the Supreme Court, Sisodia shared a picture with his wife and wrote, "First morning tea of freedom... after 17 months."
"The freedom that the Constitution has given to all of us Indians as a guarantee of the right to live. The freedom that God has given us to breathe in the open air with everyone," he wrote on X in Hindi.
On Friday, the Supreme Court, while granting bail to the AAP leader, sharply rebuked the courts below saying his long incarceration without trial had deprived him of the right to speedy justice.
Soon after his release, Sisodia visited Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's residence -- who is still locked up in Tihar jail in connection with the same case -- to meet his family members.
In an emotional meeting, in the presence of a huge gathering of AAP office bearers and supporters, Sisodia hugged Kejriwal's wife and children, as well as Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh, party general secretary Sandeep Pathak, and minister Saurabh Bharadwaj. He also greeted the Delhi Chief Minister's parents by touching their feet.
Sisodia had been in jail for 17 months after being arrested by the CBI on February 26, 2023, in connection with alleged irregularities in the Excise policy of the Delhi government. Consequently, Sisodia stepped down from his position in the Delhi cabinet on February 28, 2023. Later, he was also detained by the Enforcement Directorate on March 9 on charges of money laundering connected to the initial CBI probe.
After his release from Tihar jail, Sisodia said he got the bail due to the power of the Constitution and democracy, and that the same power will ensure the release of Kejriwal.