Delhi deputy state chief Manish Sisodia challenged his arrest by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the Supreme Court of India on Tuesday, bypassing normal legal channels such as the High Court.
The appeal has been scheduled for 3.50 p.m. (IST).
When Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud asked Sisodia's lawyer Abhishek Singhvi why he didn’t go first to the High Court before coming to the top court, Singhvi cited a 2021 judgment in a sedition case against senior journalist Vinod Dua.
In 2021, the top court canceled a sedition case against Dua over his criticism of the federal government’s handling of COVID-19 situation in the country. Dua had likewise bypassed the High Court to appeal directly to the Supreme Court.
Sisodia's Arrest in Liquor Policy Case
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) politician Manish Sisodia was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Sunday in the liquor policy case.
He was presented before the court on Monday where he was sent to five-day custody.
Federal agencies have been investigating financial irregularities in the now-scrapped liquor policy introduced by the AAP government in Delhi in November 2021 since last year.
Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia speaks during a press conference in New Delhi on August 20, 2022, after the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) raided his home in relation to alleged irregularities with the implementation of the Excise Policy 2021-22.
© AFP 2023 SAJJAD HUSSAIN
The investigation started after the federal government representative and Delhi lieutenant governor ordered a probe into the policy.
The federally-ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has repeatedly accused the AAP, its national convenor and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, and Sisodia of giving undue benefits to liquor vend licensees.
However, the AAP has denied all the allegations and said that the case against Sisodia is fake.