A Delhi court today extended the judicial custody of AAP leader Sanjay Singh till November 10 in the purported liquor policy case.
Delhi Excise Policy Case: Sanjay Singh is being given “tareekh pe tareekh (court date after court date)”, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) said as a court here on Friday extended the judicial custody of the AAP MP till November 10.
The AAP workers staged a massive a protest outside party headquarters in the national capital demanding Singh’s acquittal in the alleged Delhi excise policy ‘scam’ case. Raising slogans against the BJP, the AAP cadres attempted to march to the ruling party’s headquarters, however, their bid was foiled by a heavy contingent of the Delhi Police which had been deployed to curb the protests.
“We believe in the judiciary. But sometimes, the process becomes punishment. What is this? Tareekh pe tareekh. Sanjay Singh should be acquitted as soon as possible. The ED and the CBI have reached Rajasthan, too. This will go on till the Lok Sabha polls in 2024”, news agency ANI quoted an AAP worker as saying.
#WATCH | Delhi | Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) workers protested outside the party office and attempted to march to the BJP office demanding the release of jailed AAP MP Sanjay Singh. They were stopped by Police and detained. pic.twitter.com/7gWI0dZ8az
— ANI (@ANI) October 27, 2023
Another protesting AAP worker termed it as a “conspiracy” as Singh would often speak against the BJP-led Central Government over the Adani issue.
“This is a conspiracy. Sanjay Singh would roar against the government in the parliament over the Adani issue. This is why, the government was afraid of him”, he said.
VIDEO | AAP workers protest outside party office in Delhi against Sanjay Singh’s arrest by ED in Delhi excise policy case. pic.twitter.com/nqXKLNIbRh
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) October 27, 2023
Sanjay Singh’s Judicial custody extended till Nov 10
A court here today extended the judicial custody of AAP leader Sanjay Singh till November 10. Singh was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with a money laundering case linked to the purported Delhi excise scam.
#WATCH | AAP MP Sanjay Singh brought to Rouse Avenue Court in Delhi.
He was arrested by ED in connection with the Delhi Excise policy case, on 4th October. pic.twitter.com/LyWoUZQO2F
— ANI (@ANI) October 27, 2023
Special Judge M K Nagpal of the Rouse Avenue Court allowed Singh to sign certain cheques for his family expenses as well as his works as a Member of Parliament. The judge also directed the jail authorities concerned to ensure proper treatment to Singh, including by his private doctor.
“Court sees no reason to refuse the private treatment to the accused…. Hence, the jail superintendent concerned is directed to ensure the appropriate treatment,” the judge said.
He further directed that the counsel for the accused to ensure that no supporter of Singh and others gather at the medial centre during his visit.
Delhi HC junks plea
Earlier today, the Delhi High Court dismissed a plea moved by Aam Aadmi Party leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh challenging his remand and arrest in the alleged liquor ‘scam’ case.
In his plea, Singh had stated he is neither a suspect nor an accused and despite one main charge sheet and two supplementary charge sheets having been filed for the last more than one year, there is absolutely no involvement of the petitioner at all to date.
The bench of Justice Swarna Kanta Sharma passed the order and stated that the court did not find any reason to interfere with the order of remand or the arrest. The petition is premature at this stage and the investigation is still to take place, stated the Court.
Earlier, appearing for Sanjay Singh, Senior Advocate Vikram Chaudhari argued that the action of arresting a reputed person in the country had taken place without following procedures. For more than one year, until now, I was never called by the Enforcement Directorate, the lawyer said.
“Suddenly on October 4, they came to my house, carried out a search, took my mobile phone, and some papers and later in the evening arrested me. Dinesh Arora gives different answers to the same question, he eventually starts speaking what the agency wants him to say,” Singh’s lawyer argued.
The trial Court last week sent Sanjay Singh to Judicial Custody till October 27, 2023.
Delhi excise policy case
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) recently arrested Sanjay Singh after a day-long questioning by the ED officials at his Delhi residence.
Sanjay Singh’s party colleague and former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia of Delhi was also arrested in the same liquor policy scam case in March month this year.
ED claimed that Singh and his associates played a part in the Delhi government’s decision to give licenses to alcohol shops and merchants in 2020, causing losses to the state exchequer and violating anti-corruption laws.
ED has previously searched a number of locations including the homes and offices of Sanjay Singh’s alleged close associate Ajit Tyagi and other contractors and businessmen who allegedly benefited from the policy. In its nearly 270-page supplementary charge sheet, the ED has called Sisodia a key conspirator in the case.
The Delhi liquor scam case or the excise policy case pertains to allegations that the Arvind Kejriwal-led Delhi government’s excise policy for 2021-22 allowed cartelisation and favoured certain dealers who had allegedly paid bribes for it, a charge that has been strongly refuted by the AAP.
(With inputs from agencies)
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