‘Forcibly…without evidence’: AAP MP Sanjay Singh cries foul; turns himself in after mother's blessings

Enforcement Directorate forcibly arresting me without any evidence, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MP Sanjay Singh on Wednesday said in a recorded video before he was apprehended by the probe agency in connection with the Delhi excise policy-linked money laundering case. Moments before his arrest, Singh went to his mother's to seek her blessings, the video of which is being widely shared on social media platforms.

“Such an honest man shouldn’t be arrested like this. Had he done something wrong, he should have been arrested, but the whole country knows what an honest man he is. He told me not to worry as he will return soon,” the AAP MP's mother told news agency PTI.

Also read: ‘Totally illegal’: Arvind Kejriwal slams Sanjay Singh's arrest by ED

On the day-long operation by ED, Singh's wife said the central investigating agency came to their residence with a ‘plan’, claiming that the officials conducted raids throughout the day and found nothing. "I have faith in God and the judiciary, truth will come out and we will win," Anita Singh, wife of the AAP MP said. She further claimed that there was a ‘pressure’ upon the the officials and that Singh ‘has been arrested in a fake case’.

Meanwhile, Rashtriya Janata Dal MP Manoj Jha met Sanjay Singh's father after the arrest and expressed his solidarity. Notably, both RJD and AAP are members of the coalition formed by Opposition parties – Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) – as collective force against the ruling BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

"I told Sanjay to be brave. Your followers are there. We will fight as per the democratic set up. Truth always wins," Dinesh Singh, the AAP MP's father, told reporters.

Singh is the third AAP leader arrested in connection with the money laundering case. Earlier, Manish Sisodia and Satyendra Jain were arrested for their alleged involvement in the matter.

Earlier, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal was questioned by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the liquor policy case as a witness.

What is the liquor policy case?

The Delhi government came up with an excise policy in 2021-22 aiming to revitalise the city's flagging liquor business by replacing the sales-volume based regime with a license fee one for traders, and promised swankier stores, free of the infamous metal grilles, ultimately giving customers a better buying experience.

However, the plan came to an abrupt end after Delhi's Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena sought CBI probe into the alleged irregulaties in the regime.

According to ED chargesheet, several evidences trace back to alleged formation of cartels and payments of kickbacks over the policy to AAP leadership in order to ensure investment in Delhi liquor business. The agency claimed the involvement of certain ‘South Group’ in the alleged irregularities.

The ‘South Group’ allegedly comprises YSR Congress MP Magunta Srinivasulu Reddy, his son Raghav Magunta; Sarath Reddy, promoter of Telangana-based Aurobindo Pharma Group; and K Kavitha, daughter of Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, and it allegedly controlled nine out of 32 retail liquor zones in Delhi as part of a ‘super cartel’ formed with businessman Sameer Mahendru, the agency said.