Delhi excise policy scam: Manish Sisodia reaches CBI headquarters for interrogation

New Delhi: Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Monday reached the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) headquarters where he was summoned in connection with the Delhi excise policy scam.

Before heading for the CBI office, Sisodia went to his party's headquarters from where he stopped at Rajghat (Mahatma Gandhi's Samadhi). The AAP workers also took out a massive rally to show their solidarity with him.

As a precautionary measure, extra police forces have been deployed outside Sisodia's residence and the CBI headquarters to avoid unwanted gathering.

A CBI source told IANS that calling the accused to record their statement is part of a professional probe and no one has been exempted from it.

The CBI has named Sisodia accused number one in its FIR. The probe agency's FIR has been lodged under sections 120-B (Criminal Conspiracy) and 477-A (Falsification of accounts) of the IPC.

Sisodia has been accused of giving exemption of Rs 30 crore to liquor businessmen. The licence holders were allegedly given extension according to their own will. The policy rules were made by violating excise rules.

It also said that Sisodia and a few liquor barons were actively involved in managing and diverting the undue pecuniary advantage collected from liquor licensees to public servants, who have been accused in the case.

"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 excise policy for the year 2021-22 without approval of competent authority with an intention to extend undue favours to the licensee post tender," read the FIR, which has been accessed by IANS.

As of now the CBI has made two arrests in the matter.

Last Monday, the CBI had arrested Abhishek Boinpally in framing and implementation of the excise policy of GNCTD of Delhi.

Boinpally is from Hyderabad and is a big business man. His name was cropped up during the course of investigation. He was called to join the investigation but he was not cooperating in the questioning and was allegedly trying to mislead the CBI.

Boinpally was not named in the FIR.

Vijay Nair, the Jor Bagh-based businessman, was the first one to be arrested by the agency. After him the Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested Sameer Mahendru who is an alleged associate of Nair.