NEW DELHI:
ED
on Tuesday told
Delhi HC
that
AAP
would be made a co-accused in the next prosecution complaint that the agency would file in Delhi
excise policy case
. ED’s disclosure came while opposing the bail plea of Delhi’s ex-deputy CM Manish Sisodia in a
money laundering
case related to the larger matter.
AAP said, “The intention behind the fake probe is to frame AAP, arrest its top leaders and crush the party.” The case was built on statements of accused-turned-approvers, all of whom had links to BJP, it said.
ED functioning like political wing of BJP, says AAP
Last year,
Supreme Court
had touched upon the issue of making AAP an accused in the case and asked ED why the political party was not named if the porbe agency’s claim is to be believed that it benefited from the alleged kickbacks in the liquor policy case. “A political party is said to be the beneficiary of this, but it is neither an accused nor impleaded in the case. How do you answer that?” SC had then remarked, but clarified a day later that its query was “not to implicate any political party” but “just a legal question” aimed at the agency.
AAP national chief and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal has already argued in his petition pending before the HC that a political party is not covered under the anti-money laundering law. However HC, while upholding Kejriwal’s arrest in the case, had noted that Section 70 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), which deals with companies, is attracted in the case, after ED reiterated that AAP is similar to a company and Kejriwal its director, while fixing liability for the alleged scam.
During the hearing on Tuesday, ED claimed that there were concerted efforts by accused persons to delay the process of framing of charges in the case even as
CBI
also opposed Sisodia’s bail plea in the corruption case and blamed him for the delay. It expressed apprehension that Sisodia might tamper with evidence if released.
However, Sisodia’s legal team highlighted that he is entitled to bail and pointed out that the ED and the CBI are still arresting people in the money laundering and corruption case, so there is no question of early conclusion of the trial.
Senior advocate Mohit Mathur, representing Sisodia, said the trial court judge, while dismissing the bail plea, has not shown how the AAP leader has contributed to the delay. “I had filed an application to physically meet my wife. Thereafter, I moved an application to sign a cheque. How does it delay the trial? How have I contributed to the delay in the proceedings? The trial court has said that out of 38 applications, 13 were filed by Sisodia. But the court has not said how my application contributed to the delay,” he countered the ED’s allegation. The former CM also sought parity on the ground that other accused in the case have got bail. “Post dismissal of my earlier bail, three accused have gotten some relief from the Supreme Court. Benoy Babu in ED case. Sanjay Singh, again in ED case and Arvind Kejriwal most recently. There is no threat as far as my running away is concerned. I (Sisodia) have been in custody for 14.5 months,” he argued.
Reacting to the ED’s submission in court that it was going to make AAP an accused in the excise policy case, the party in a statement said the probe agency was functioning like a political wing of the BJP.
Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma after hearing the arguments reserved it for orders. AAP claimed that even after two years of investigation and over 500 raids, not a single rupee or a piece of evidence had so far been recovered from any of the AAP functionaries. “If at all there is any money trail recovered so far in the alleged Delhi liquor scam, it is the Rs 60 Crore that the kingpin of the scam, Sharath Reddy, has given to BJP (through electoral bonds). Had ED been doing an impartial investigation, it would have immediately arrested BJP President JP Nadda and made the party the prime accused in the scam. But unfortunately, it is acting as a political wing and a mouthpiece of the BJP,” AAP said.
Delhi BJP spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor said that it was AAP’s standard practice to accuse the investigating agencies of being political in case of any adverse development against them. “Instead of giving media reactions, AAP should fight the allegations in the courtroom where their leaders’ pleas fail repeatedly,” Kapoor said.
