CBI files charge sheet against Kejriwal, calls him one of conspirators
The Supreme Court this month granted Kejriwal interim bail in the ED’s case, saying he has suffered incarceration for over 90 days and the issue involved the right to life and liberty
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Monday filed a charge sheet against Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal in connection with its corruption probe into the now scrapped 2021-22 Delhi excise policy, calling him one of the conspirators of the criminal conspiracy, people familiar with the matter said. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) allegedly received kickbacks worth ₹100 crore, the agency said.
The CBI, which arrested Kejriwal on June 26, while seeking his remand called him one of the main conspirators of the criminal conspiracy in the commission of offences related to the policy. “It has been revealed that Vijay Nair [former media in charge of AAP), a close associate of Kejriwal, was contacting various liquor manufacturers and traders and demanding undue gratification since March 2021, for incorporation of provisions favourable to them in the upcoming Delhi excise policy 2021-22.”
The CBI, which first questioned Kejriwal in April 2023, has so far filed five charge sheets in the case against 18 accused including Kejriwal’s former deputy, Manish Sisodia, and Bharat Rashtra Samithi leader K Kavitha. In the previous charge sheet, CBI claimed that out of ₹100 crore AAP allegedly received as kickbacks, ₹44.45 crore was transferred to Goa from June 2021 to January 2022 through “hawala channels” for the election campaign.
The CBI has claimed the new policy was formulated on May 20 and 21, 2021, and the council of ministers in the Delhi government “processed and approved” it through circulation on May 21, 2021, in a very hurried manner despite the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested Kejriwal in the case on March 21. It filed a charge sheet against him on May 17 calling Kejriwal the brain behind the AAP who controlled its major activities. ED said he was also one of the founding members and was also involved in the decision-making of the policy as evident from the statements of the witnesses. It claimed proceeds of crime worth ₹1,100 crore had been identified in the Delhi excise policy case.
The Supreme Court this month granted Kejriwal interim bail in the ED’s case, saying he has suffered incarceration for over 90 days and that the issue involved the right to life and liberty of an individual. The verdict was a legal victory for Kejriwal and his AAP and provided a boost to the party’s political narrative even as he remained in custody due to CBI’s case.
The Delhi government’s 2021-22 excise policy was aimed at revitalizing the city’s flagging liquor business and replacing it with a sales-volume-based regime with a license fee for traders. It promised swankier stores ultimately giving customers a better buying experience. The policy introduced discounts and offers on liquor purchases, a first for Delhi.
The plan ended abruptly, with Delhi’s lieutenant governor Vinai Kumar Saxena recommending a probe into alleged irregularities in the regime. This ultimately resulted in the policy being scrapped prematurely and being replaced with the 2020-21 regime. AAP alleged that Saxena’s predecessor sabotaged the move with a few last-minute changes that resulted in lower-than-expected revenues.
ED has also written to the Union home ministry alleging irregularities in AAP’s donations worth ₹7.08 crore from overseas in violation of the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act and Representation of People’s Act.
