Agencies Misleading SC, INDIA Bloc to Protest at Parliament against It: Sanjay Singh

The Aam Aadmi Party accused central investigative agencies of misusing their powers to target opposition leaders, including Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and former deputy Manish Sisodia. They claim that despite court rulings, agencies like the ED and CBI continue to detain leaders without substantial evidence or progress in trials.

New Delhi: The Aam Aadmi Party has accused central investigative agencies of "misleading" the Supreme Court, and said opposition INDIA bloc will protest against it on the Parliament premises on Monday.

Addressing a press conference here on Sunday, AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh said that despite a trial court granting bail to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in the excise policy case, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) sought the High Court's intervention and secured a stay on the bail.

And later when Kejriwal seemed set to receive bail from the Supreme Court, the central government got him arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), he claimed. This is a "blatant misuse of investigating agencies", he said, adding both ED and CBI lack evidence against Arvind Kejriwal and his former deputy Manish Sisodia.

There was no immediate reaction from any of the investigative agencies. Singh said the INDIA bloc plans to protest against agencies in Parliament on Monday. "When Manish Sisodia's bail was being heard in the Supreme Court, the SC told the ED that the investigation is going on for one-and-a-half years. How long will you keep a person in jail? There cannot be an endless investigation. Then the ED told the Supreme Court that we would finish the trial in six to eight months.

"The whole country knows that the ED had said that the entire trial would be over. Six months have passed, and Manish Sisodia is still in jail. The ED's charge sheet has not been filed yet. The trial is far from starting," he alleged.

The INDIA bloc parties had a meeting at the House of Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Saturday over the issue of "misuse of investigative agencies". "Everyone decided unanimously that on Monday at 10:30 am, all the constituent parties of the INDIA bloc will protest against the misuse of the ED-CBI across the country on the Parliament premises," Singh said.

"Apart from Arvind Kejriwal, three leaders in West Bengal, Hemant Soren, Sanjay Raut, Anil Deshmukh and many other leaders were put in jail. The ED-CBI was used against Rahul Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi, Akhilesh Yadav, Sharad Pawar, and Tejashwi Yadav.

"Continuous raids are being conducted against the party of Uddhav Thackeray and Sharad Pawar. Action is being taken against the entire family of Tejashwi Yadav and Mamata Banerjee's nephew," Singh said.