Delhi Deputy State Chief Manish Sisodia was arrested on Sunday by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in connection with the Delhi liquor policy case.
Sisodia was arrested following eight hours of questioning by the CBI.
Before visiting CBI headquarters in the morning, Sisodia visited Mahatma Gandhi's memorial at Delhi's Rajghat and then delivered a speech where hundreds of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) supporters shouted slogans for him.
"I will be in jail for 7-8 months. Don't feel sorry for me, be proud. PM [Narendra] Modi fears [Delhi state chief] Arvind Kejriwal, so he wants to frame me in a fake case. It would be best if you fought on. My wife, who has stood by me from Day 1, is unwell and alone at home. Take care of her. And I want to tell children of Delhi, study hard and listen to your parents," Sisodia said in Hindi.
Meanwhile, many AAP politicians said that they had been put under house arrest, claiming they were being stopped from going outside to support Sisodia.
"God is with you, Manish [Sisodia]. The blessings of lakhs (hundreds of thousands) of children and their parents are with you. When you go to jail for the country and society, it is not a curse, it is a glory. I pray to God that you return from jail soon. Children, parents and all of us in Delhi will be waiting for you," Delhi Chief Arvind Kejriwal tweeted on Sunday.
Heavy Security Deployed
Security has been strengthened outside Sisodia's house, the AAP office in Delhi, and the CBI headquarters.
According to media reports, police have blocked all roads that lead to the CBI headquarters and installed heavy barricades, and announced that under Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), no more than three people could gather in the area.
What is Liquor Policy Case
Under the new liquor policy which as was introduced by the AAP-ruled Delhi government in November 2021, it was planned to open 800 new liquor shops in the capital.
Licenses were issued to private business holders thus simultaneously ending liquor sales supervised by the government. Under the new law, it became easier for private players to get a liquor-selling license.
Other rules included the option of liquors' home delivery, as well as allowing licensees to sell liquor at their decided price — including discounts, as well as officially allowing liquor shops to remain open till 3 am.
However, soon the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) alleged that Manish Sisodia, who is also head of Delhi's excise department, bent the rules and gave undue benefits to liquor vend licensees.
After that, Delhi's Lieutenant Governor ordered the CBI and Enforcement Directorate (ED) to start an inquiry. Both agencies conducted raids across India and claimed a liquor lobby allegedly paid at least INR one billion to the Aam Aadmi Party.
The ED also claimed the new policy caused a INR 28 billion loss to the government. So far, the agency has arrested nine people, including Magunta Raghava Reddy, son of parliamentarian Magunta Srinivasulu Reddy. The agency has also named Sisodia as one of the accused in the case.
Meanwhile, AAP has denied all the allegations on many occasions and even said that these cases were fake.
"There is no such thing as a liquor scam. We formulated the country's best and most transparent policy," Kejriwal had said earlier.
In July 2022, the Delhi government scrapped the new liquor policy.