Delhi Excise Policy Case: ED Summons CM Arvind Kejriwal on December 21

The Enforcement Directorate has summoned Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on December 21 in the excise policy case.

The summon came as the Aam Aadmi Party national convener was scheduled to leave for a 10-day Vipassana meditation course this week. Kejriwal will leave for the course to an undisclosed location on December 19, a day after the winter session of the Delhi Assembly is concluded as per the schedule.

Vipassana is an ancient Indian meditation technique in which practitioners abstain from any communication, either by talking or via gestures, for an extended period to restore their mental well-being. The chief minister has been practising Vipassana for a long and has been to several places, including Bengaluru and Jaipur, in the past years to practise the ancient meditation system.

Every year, Kejriwal goes for a 10-day Vipassana course and this year he will do so from December 19 to 30, the officials said.

The federal agency had earlier summoned Kejriwal on November 2 for questioning in connection with alleged irregularities in the now-scrapped excise policy. On April 16 this year, Kejriwal was questioned by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for over nine hours in the case.

AAP Reacts to ED Summon

When asked if Kejriwal will appear before the ED, AAP general secretary Sandeep Pathak said, “Vipassana is a scheduled programme. Lawyers will study the notice and then take a call.”

SISODIA, SANJAY SINGH BEHIND BARS IN CASE

Two top Aam Aadmi Party leaders– Manish Sisodia and Sanjay Singh– are behind bars in connection with the money laundering case linked with the alleged Delhi liquor scam.

Sanjay Singh, who represents the party in Rajya Sabha was arrested on October 4 after the Enforcement Directorate raided his premises in connection with the Delhi excise policy-linked money laundering case.

Sisodia was first arrested by the CBI on February 26 for his alleged role in the scam. He resigned from the Delhi Cabinet on February 28. The ED later arrested the AAP leader on March 9 from Tihar Jail where he is currently lodged in judicial custody. In its nearly 270-page supplementary charge sheet which has annexures running into 2,000 pages, the ED has called Sisodia a “key conspirator” in the case.

DELHI EXCISE POLICY ‘SCAM’

The Delhi government had implemented the policy on November 17, 2021, but scrapped it at the end of September 2022 amid allegations of corruption. According to the investigating agencies, the profit margins of wholesalers were increased from five to 12 per cent under the new policy.

While agencies have alleged that the new policy resulted in cartelisation and those ineligible for liquor licences were favoured for monetary benefits, the AAP-led Delhi government and Manish Sisodia have denied any wrongdoing, saying that the new policy would have led to an increase in Delhi’s revenue share.