- The Aam Admi Party leader will be produced in a local court on Monday.
- He gave evasive replies and did not co-operate (with) the investigation despite being confronted with evidence to the contrary: CBI
NE NEWS SERVICE
NEW DELHI, FEB 26
The Central bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Sunday arrested Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia in connection with alleged corruption in the formulation and implementation of the now-scrapped excise policy, after interrogating him at its office for nearly eight hours. The Aam Admi Party leader will be produced in a local court on Monday.
The probe agency said Sisodia remained uncooperative during the questioning and refused to give clarifications sought by officials on crucial points.
“He gave evasive replies and did not co-operate (with) the investigation despite being confronted with evidence to the contrary. Therefore, he has been arrested,” it said in a statement.
Delhi Chief Minister and AAP supremo Arvidn Kejriwal condemned Sisodia’s arrest and called it as ‘dirty politics’. “Manish is innocent. His arrest is dirty politics. His arrest has angered people quite a lot. People are watching everything. People now understand everything and will give a reply to this. It will boost our spirit and our struggle will only get stronger,” Kejriwal said in a tweet.
मैं और @BhagwantMann अभी @msisodia जी की Wife से मिलकर आ रहे हैं। उन्हें काफ़ी Serious बीमारी है- Multiple Sclerosis
वो घर में अकेली हैं और मनीष जी उनका ख्याल रखते थे
हमने उन्हें सांत्वना दी कि चिंता न करे, आपके पति बहुत साहसी हैं, पूरे देश को उन पर गर्व है
-CM @ArvindKejriwal pic.twitter.com/hfugy458cy
— AAP (@AamAadmiParty) February 26, 2023
AAP MP Sanjay Singh described the CBI move as the “height of dictatorship” and said God will not forgive Prime Minister Narendra Modi for it. “Sisodia’s arrest is the height of dictatorship. You have arrested a good person and best education minister which is not the right thing, Modi ji. God will not forgive you. One day, your dictatorship will definitely end, Modi ji,” Singh said in a tweet.
जब भी तानाशाह ने सच को दबाने की कोशिश की है, तब सत्य के लिए लड़ने वाले और ज़्यादा मज़बूत हुए हैं।
BJP याद रखे
यही @msisodia देश के शिक्षा मंत्री बनेंगे और AAP, BJP का काल बनेगी।– @AtishiAAP #ModiFearsKejriwal pic.twitter.com/hUGY7Kgvdb
— AAP Gujarat (@AAPGujarat) February 26, 2023
AAP spokesperson and MLA Atishi said Sisodia was arrested because of growing popularity of the party and its leader Kejriwal.
દેશના સર્વશ્રેષ્ઠ શિક્ષામંત્રી @msisodia
જી ની ધરપકડ પર ગુજરાત પ્રદેશ પ્રમુખ @isudan_gadhvi જી ની પ્રતિક્રિયા..!#ModiFearsKejriwal pic.twitter.com/1fgBphB1jy— AAP Gujarat (@AAPGujarat) February 26, 2023
Sisodia arrived at the heavily-barricaded CBI office around 11 am after paying homage to Mahatma Gandhi at Rajghat. Police had made elaborate security arrangements in the area and detained around 50 persons, including Sanjay Singh and minister Gopal Rai, for staging protests near the CBI office. Police had also imposed 144 CrPC in the area.
'આપ' ના રાષ્ટ્રીય સંયોજક અરવિંદ કેજરીવાલજી તરફથી ગુજરાતના લોકોનો ખુબ ખુબ આભાર માનું છું,
અમારા માટે આ ખુબ ગર્વની વાત છે કે ગુજરાત ચૂંટણી માં 13% વોટ મળ્યા અને આમ આદમી પાર્ટી નેશનલ પાર્ટી બની.– @BhagwantMann pic.twitter.com/GTrJbwoHoK
— AAP Gujarat (@AAPGujarat) February 26, 2023
Before leaving for the CBI office, Sisodia had said he was not afraid of going to jail over “false allegations”.
“When I left my job as a journalist, my wife supported me and even today, my family is standing by my side. My workers will take care of my family if I get arrested,” he told reporters.
Saying that he would fully cooperate with the probe, he asserted, “I have the love of lakhs of children and crores of countrymen with me. Even if I have to go to jail for a few months, I do not care. We are followers of Bhagat Singh. Bhagat Singh died for the country. If I have to go to jail over such false allegations, it is a small thing”.
Sisodia, who also holds the Finance portfolio in the Delhi Cabinet, was originally summoned last Sunday but he sought deferment of his questioning citing the Budget exercise, following which, the CBI had asked him to appear on February 26.
The case pertains to allegations that the Delhi government’s policy to grant licences to liquor traders favoured certain dealers who had allegedly paid bribes for it, a charge strongly refuted by the AAP.
Sisodia, accused number one in the CBI FIR, was earlier questioned on October 17, a month before the agency filed its charge sheet on November 25. According to officials, CBI had not named Sisodia in the charge sheet as the probe agency kept the probe open against him and other suspects and accused.
