New Delhi:Delhi Lieutenant Governor (LG) VK Saxena has granted permission to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to prosecute AAP Chief and former Delhi Chief Minister, Arvind Kejriwal, in the excise policy case, ANI reported on Saturday.
The Enforcement Directorate had sought permission on December 5 for sanction of prosecution against Kejriwal. The AAP supremo and his party leader Manish Sisodia are currently out on bail in both the ED and Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) cases related to the now-scrapped excise policy.
AAP claims no such permission issued
The Aam Aadmi Party, however, claimed no such permission was issued and demanded that the ED should show a copy of it.
"If LG Vinay Saxena has given permission to prosecute Arvind Kejriwal, then why is ED not showing the copy of that permission? It is clear that this news is false and misleading. Stop making empty promises to divert attention from the issue of insult to Baba Saheb and show where is the sanction given to ED to prosecute?" Sisodia said on X. His post was retweeted by AAP's official handle.
AAP national spokesperson and Delhi minister Saurabh Bharadwaj also denied the report. "ED is spreading false news, if LG Saxena has given permission to file a case against Kejriwal then show the copy," he said in a post on X.
A similar statement was issued by Priyanka Kakkar, AAP's chief national spokesperson.
Delhi HC grants ED additional time
Pertinently, the Delhi High Court on Friday granted the ED additional time to file its reply to the petition filed by Kejriwal and Sisodia. The petition challenges the trial court's decision to take cognizance of the chargesheets in the Delhi Excise Liquor Policy case.
The matter has been scheduled for hearing on February 5, by the bench of Justice Manoj Kumar Ohri. Recently Delhi High Court had issued a notice on Kejriwal and Sisodia's plea challenging the trial court's decision to take cognizance of the Enforcement Directorate's chargesheet against them in the alleged excise policy scam.
The accusations
According to the Enforcement Directorate (ED), the Excise Policy was deliberately designed with loopholes to benefit AAP leaders and foster cartel formations. The ED accused AAP leaders of receiving kickbacks from liquor businesses in exchange for preferential treatment, including discounts, license fee waivers, and relief during the Covid-19 disruptions.
The ED further alleged that the "scam" involved awarding wholesale liquor distribution rights to private entities with a fixed 12% margin, in return for a 6% kickback. Additionally, AAP leaders were accused of influencing the outcome of elections in Punjab and Goa in early 2022. (Agency inputs)
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