Tag: policy

CBI names Sisodia in chargesheet for the first time in Delhi excise policy case

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New Delhi: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Tuesday charge-sheeted former Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi, Manish Sisodia, along with businessman Amandeep Singh Dhall, Hyderabad-based CA Butchibabu Gorantla, and a person named Arjun Pandey in connection with the Delhi liquor policy case.
All four of them have been chargesheeted in the second supplementary charge sheet filed in this matter by the CBI on Tuesday. The charge sheet has invoked sections Indian Penal Code and the Prevention of Corruption Act. The is the first that the CBI has named Sisodia, who’s is judicial custody for nearly two months now, in its charge sheet.
The CBI had earlier filed a charge sheet in the same case against seven persons.

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#CBI #names #Sisodia #chargesheet #time #Delhi #excise #policy #case
( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

April 25, 2023
Susan Rice to step down as domestic policy adviser

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Rice’s departure leaves a major hole within the top ranks of the White House right as it gears up for a likely re-election campaign and as it faces a stare down with congressional Republicans over raising the debt limit. Among those being eyed as a replacement for her include Neera Tanden, Biden’s staff secretary and a senior adviser, four people with knowledge of the deliberations told POLITICO. Separately, a top White House official said no replacement had been identified yet.
One former administration official said White House aides were talking openly about Tanden’s consideration for Rice’s job over the weekend, calling her potential appointment “pretty damn firm.”
Rice served as U.N. ambassador at the beginning of the Obama administration and later became President Barack Obama’s national security adviser during Obama’s second term. Rice has led the White House Domestic Policy Council since the start of the Biden administration.
“I surprised a lot of people when I named Ambassador Susan Rice as my Domestic Policy Advisor,” Biden said. “Susan was synonymous with foreign policy, having previously served as National Security Advisor and UN Ambassador. But what I knew then and what we all know now — after more than two years of her steady leadership of the Domestic Policy Council — it’s clear: there is no one more capable, and more determined to get important things done for the American people than Susan Rice.”
Rice, whose background had been almost entirely in foreign policy, oversaw a historic two-year period of legislative activity with the passage of a major Covid-19 relief bill, a bipartisan infrastructure overhaul and last year’s Inflation Reduction Act, which included $369 billion to combat climate change and lowered the cost of prescription drugs for seniors.
Her tenure also saw Biden sign numerous executive orders related to climate change, health care, gun safety and student loans. But the administration’s approach to the U.S.-Mexico border and its inability to stem a surge of migrants seeking asylum who have overwhelmed border agents has left the president vulnerable to continued Republican attacks on the issue.
The White House next month is poised to end Title 42, lifting a strict Trump-era border policy decried by many Democrats — but that, officials including Rice argued, at times, was necessary to prevent another influx of migrants at the southern border.
Rice has been central to crafting a strategy for replacing Title 42, which the administration plans to unveil later this week.

She also faced heat in recent days over a New York Times report that painted her and other senior officials as dismissive of concerns that child migrants were being exploited amid the administration’s rush to process record numbers of unaccompanied children at the southern border in early 2021. The White House has disputed that portrayal.
Rice’s departure represents the latest high-level shuffle within the White House’s policy apparatus, following the exits of National Economic Council Director Brian Deese and Council of Economic Advisers chief Cecilia Rouse earlier this year.
Chief of staff Jeff Zients is also early into his tenure, after taking over for Ron Klain in early February.
The White House moved quickly to replace all three, and the people with knowledge of the deliberations said that elevating Tanden would similarly allow them to quickly plug the vacancy atop the Domestic Policy Council.
Tanden also has experience running a large policy operation, having previously led the influential progressive think tank Center for American Progress, and worked extensively on health care and other domestic priorities both at CAP and as a senior health official in the Obama administration.
Biden initially picked Tanden to run his Office of Management and Budget in late 2020. But her nomination stalled in the face of opposition from Republicans and Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) over her history of combative tweets aimed at GOP politicians and policies.
But Tanden has kept a lower public profile since then, and the top domestic policy job would not require Senate confirmation.
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( With inputs from : www.politico.com )

April 24, 2023
Mob lynching: SC issues notice to Centre, states on plea seeking fair compensation policy

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New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday sought response from Centre and state governments on a PIL seeking direction to adopt uniform and fair compensation policy for victims of mob lynching in the country.
A bench of Justices K.M. Joseph and B.V. Nagarathna noted that writ petition, filed by Indian Muslims for Progress and Reforms, has been filed in public interest seeking inter alia the implementation of the directions issued by this court in the case of Tehseen S. Poonawalla v. Union of India and others (2018).
Advocate Javed R. Shaikh, counsel for the petitioner, drew the court’s attention to the pertinent passage in the aforesaid judgment wherein it was directed that the states shall frame a scheme for the purpose of providing victim compensation in cases of lynching/mob violence under Section 357A of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.

He submitted that certain states have formulated a scheme while many of the states have not done so till date.
“It was further submitted that the said judgment had given guidelines as to the manner in which the victim compensation scheme had to be formulated inasmuch as the state governments have to give due regard to the nature of the bodily injury, psychological injury and loss of earnings including other opportunities such as loss of educational opportunities and expenses incurred on account of the suffering due to the mob lynching/ mob violence”, noted the top court, in its order.
“In this regard it was submitted that the endeavour of the petitioner is to seek implementation of the directions issued by this court in the aforesaid judgment and further to have as far as possible a uniform policy for grant of exgratia compensation to the victims of hate crime/mob lynching”.
After hearing the counsel, the bench said: “We issue notice to the respondents. The respondents are directed to file their respective affidavits with regard to the implementation of the directions issued in the aforesaid case and the manner in which it has been done. The said affidavit shall be filed within a period of eight weeks from the date of the service of notice.”

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#Mob #lynching #issues #notice #Centre #states #plea #seeking #fair #compensation #policy
( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

April 21, 2023
Europe’s disunity over China deepens

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BRUSSELS — Just when you thought Europe’s China policy could not be more disunited, the two most powerful countries of the European Union are now also at odds over whether to revive a moribund investment agreement with the authoritarian superpower.
For France, resuscitating the so-called EU-China Comprehensive Agreement on Investment (CAI) is “less urgent” and “just not practicable,” according to French President Emmanuel Macron.
Meanwhile, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is in favor of “reactivating” the agreement, which stalled soon after it was announced in late 2020 after Beijing imposed sanctions on several members of the European Parliament for criticizing human rights violations.
Speaking to POLITICO aboard his presidential plane during a visit to China earlier this month, Macron said he and Chinese leader Xi Jinping discussed the CAI, “but just a little bit.”
“I was very blunt with President Xi, I was very honest, as far as this is a European process — all the institutions need to be involved, and there is no chance to see any progress on this agreement as long as we have members of the European Parliament sanctioned by China,” Macron told POLITICO in English.
Beijing has proved skilled at preventing the EU from developing a unified China policy, using threats ranging from potential bans on French and Spanish wine to warnings that China will buy American Boeing instead of French Airbus planes.
Disagreement over the CAI is only one further example of divergence over China policy in Europe, where Beijing has expertly courted various countries and played them against each other in games of divide-and-rule over the past decade.
Scholz seeks CAI thaw
Following seven years of tortuous negotiations, the CAI was rushed through by former German Chancellor Angela Merkel at the end of Germany’s six-month rotating presidency of the Council of the EU in late 2020.

Merkel sought to seal the deal and ingratiate herself with Beijing before Washington could apply pressure to block it, causing tension with the incoming administration of U.S. President Joe Biden.
Germany has long been the most vocal cheerleader for the CAI due to its scale of manufacturing investments in China, particularly in the car-making and chemicals sectors.
The CAI would have made it marginally easier for European companies to invest in China and protect their intellectual property there. But critics decried weak worker protections and questioned to what degree it could be enforced.
Xi Jinping during Macron’s visit to Beijing | Ludovic Marin/AFP via Getty Images
Soon after the agreement was announced, Beijing imposed sanctions on several European parliamentarians in retaliation for their criticism of human rights abuses in the restive region of Xinjiang.
The deal, which requires ratification by the European parliament, went into political deep freeze.
Scholz, who at times seems to mimic the more popular Merkel, would like to take CAI “out of the freezer” — but has cautioned that “this must be done with care” to avoid political pitfalls, according to a person he briefed directly but who was not authorized to comment publicly.
“It is surprising Scholz still thinks this is a good idea, despite the vastly changed context from a couple of years ago,” said one senior EU official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to freely discuss sensitive diplomatic issues.
EU branches split
Not only are EU countries divided on how to approach CAI — there’s also a rift among institutions in Brussels.
With its members sanctioned, the European Parliament is certain to reject any fresh attempt to ratify the CAI.
But like Scholz, European Council President Charles Michel also hopes to resuscitate the deal. He has discussed this with Chinese communist leaders, including during his solo visit to Beijing late last year, according to a senior EU official familiar with the matter who was not authorized to speak publicly.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, however, has stymied Michel’s attempts to place the agreement back on the agenda in Brussels. Von der Leyen is far more skeptical of engaging with China, citing increasing aggression abroad and repression at home.
Von der Leyen accompanied Macron on part of his China trip earlier this month, but said of her brief meeting with Xi Jinping and other Chinese officials that the topic of CAI “did not come up.” She has publicly argued that the deal needs to be “reassessed” in light of deteriorating relations between Beijing and the West.
Meanwhile, Chinese officials have made overtures to Michel and other sympathetic European leaders, suggesting China could unilaterally lift its sanctions on members of the European Parliament — but only with a “guarantee” the CAI would eventually be ratified.
A spokesperson for Michel said an informal meeting of EU foreign ministers will discuss EU-China relations on May 12. “Following that discussion we will then assess when the topic of China is again put on the table of the European Council,” he said.
During the same interview with POLITICO, Macron caused consternation in Western capitals when he said Europe should not follow America, but instead avoid confronting China over its stated goal of seizing the democratic island of Taiwan by force.
Manfred Weber, head of the center-right European People’s Party, the largest party in the European Parliament, described the French president’s comments as “a disaster.”
In an an interview with Italian media, he said that the remarks had “weakened the EU” and “made clear the great rift within the European Union in defining a common strategic plan against Beijing.”

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#Europes #disunity #China #deepens
( With inputs from : www.politico.eu )

April 21, 2023
Excise Policy case: Sisodia kingpin of conspiracy, CBI tells HC

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New Delhi: The CBI Thursday claimed before the Delhi High Court that former Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia, arrested in connection with the excise policy scam case, is involved in commission of grave economic offences and is key to unravelling the modus operandi of the crime.
The submissions were made by the CBI in a short written reply while opposing the senior AAP leader’s bail plea, which it said was devoid of any merit and was an attempt to misuse the intricacies of law to thwart the progress of investigation in the case.
While the CBI contended that Sisodia is the “kingpin and architect of the conspiracy” and his influence and clout disentitle him to any parity with the co-accused enlarged on bail, the AAP leader urged the high court to grant him bail claiming no money trail linking him to the proceeds of alleged crime has been found.

His lawyers had sought parity for him with other accused who have got the relief and said Sisodia is not in a position to influence the witnesses in the case or tamper with evidence.
Justice Dinesh Kumar Sharma, after hearing the arguments of Sisodia’s lawyers, fixed April 26 for submissions by CBI counsel.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had arrested Sisodia for alleged corruption in formulation and implementation of the now-scrapped Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22 on February 26 following several rounds of questioning.
On March 31, the trial court here had dismissed Sisodia’s bail plea in the matter, saying he was “prima facie the architect” of the “scam” and had played the “most important and vital role” in the criminal conspiracy related to alleged payment of advance kickbacks of Rs 90-100 crore meant for him and his colleagues in the Delhi government.
Challenging the trial court’s order denying bail, senior advocate Dayan Krishnan, appearing for Sisodia, said the lower court has not considered the medical condition of the AAP leader’s wife who is suffering from multiple sclerosis. He said the condition of Sisodia’s wife was deteriorating.

He said all the offences alleged against Sisodia are punishable with imprisonment up to seven years, something which should weigh in favour of the AAP leader. The lawyer also contended the trial in the case is not going to conclude anytime soon.
Senior advocate Mohit Mathur, also representing Sisodia, said the allegation that he was a recipient of the proceeds of crime was “all in air” and no money trail leading to him has been found.
The CBI said in its reply that Sisodia was arrested on February 26 due to his non-cooperative conduct during the investigation and he has been confronted with sensitive documents and witnesses.
“There is every likelihood that in case the applicant is released on bail he shall tamper with the evidence and influence witnesses, more specifically in light of his past conduct to derail the investigation.
“Such apprehensions are fortified more specifically when the file relating to the Excise Department containing the cabinet note dated January 28, 2021 remains missing. Additionally, the applicant has also destroyed his mobile phone on the day the present matter was referred by the Lieutenant Governor to the CBI on July 22, 2022,” the agency claimed.
The CBI said the case involves a deep-rooted, multi-layered conspiracy.
“The Applicant is a key link to unearth the modus operandi. The Applicant has remained non-cooperative and evasive throughout the investigation in a bid to derail the instant investigation,” it said.
The probe agency said investigation in the case is still going on with regard to certain critical aspects, including the involvement of other public servants and private persons. Recently, the role of Amandeep Singh Dhall, Director of M/s Brindco Sales Private Limited has also come to light, it added.
The CBI said there was ample evidence on record to show that Sisodia, who was then holding important portfolios including finance and excise, is the chief architect of the conspiracy of tweaking and manipulating the formulation and implementation of the excise policy for causing pecuniary advantage and continues to yield unparalleled influence in the government.
“Under the guise of bringing revolutionary changes to the Excise Policy, the applicant misused his powers and introduced favourable provisions in the new policy.
“This was done to facilitate the monopolisation of wholesale and retail liquor trade in Delhi for the accused persons of the South Group for siphoning off 6 per cent out of 12 per cent windfall profit margin for wholesalers provided in the policy in lieu of upfront money/ kickbacks of Rs 90- 100 crores paid by the South Group,” it claimed.
The CBI alleged Sisodia misused his official position and dishonestly introduced changes to the excise policy under the influence of the South Group through his close associate Vijay Nair.
The changes introduced by the applicant not only facilitated the cartelisation of liquor trade in Delhi by the South Group but also enabled it to recover the kickbacks paid by them upfront, it claimed.
It alleged the AAP leader threatened and pressured officials including the excise commissioners when they did not accede to his directions.
The CBI claimed cabinet ministers as well as the chief minister have, during the course of investigation, confirmed the policy was formulated by Sisodia and governed solely by the excise personnel.
“Therefore, the averments of the applicant regarding receiving approvals from departments and office of the Lieutenant Governor have no force in light of overwhelming evidence of conspiracy of the petitioner with the South Group and other accused,” it said.
The high court had earlier issued notice to the CBI and asked it to respond to Sisodia’s bail plea, which claimed he was “totally innocent” and a “victim of political witch-hunt”.
In his plea filed before the court, Sisodia said there was no material to show his involvement in the offences alleged in the FIR.
“The applicant is totally innocent, who is a highly respected citizen and he has highest respect for the law. The applicant is a victim of political witch-hunt, which has led to his arrest by the respondent (CBI) on account of ulterior motive to drag the reputation of the applicant through the mud,” his petition said.
The petition said the excise policy was the “collective responsibility” of the Cabinet and it was implemented after being drafted by the excise department. It was duly approved and Sisodia cannot be held criminally liable for the collective decision of the Cabinet, the excise department, finance department, planning department, the law department and the LG, the petition added.
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( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

April 20, 2023
Delhi HC reserves order on plea by start-ups against Google’s new payment policy

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New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Wednesday said it will pass an order on a petition by Alliance of Digital India Foundation (ADIF) against Google’s policy in relation to permitting the use of third party payment processors for paid app downloads and in-app purchases on a commission basis.
Justice Tushar Rao Gedela reserved order on the petition after hearing the counsel for the petitioner, which is an alliance of individuals and an industry representative body of the innovative start-ups in the country, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) and Google.
“Arguments heard. Order is reserved,” said the judge.

The petitioner submitted that under its User Choice Billing’ policy, which is slated to come into force from April 26, Google will be charging service fee at 11% or 26% in case of third party payment processors, which is anti-competitive and an attempt to bypass an order passed by the Competition Commission of India.
The petitioner, which moved the court earlier this month, said the US technology giant operates a mobile application marketplace for android devices called ‘Play Store’ which enjoys supreme dominance in that market and under the present framework, there is no requirement to pay any commission for third party payment processors.
The court was informed that in October last year, the CCI, while imposing a penalty of Rs 936 crore, asked Google to allow and not restrict app developers from using any third-party billing services and to not impose any discriminatory condition.
The petitioner said its grievance was that the CCI has failed to act on its plea in relation to the policy owing to lack of quorum to consider the issue.
It contended that the CCI must invoke the “doctrine of necessity” and look into the matter in spite of a lack of quorum as a refusal to intervene will cause irreversible harm to the petitioners and other app developers and lead to distortion in the market.

The implementation of the policy, in the meantime, must be kept in abeyance till the matter is looked into by the anti-trust regulator, the petitioner prayed.
Additional Solicitor General N Venkataraman said the process of appointment of CCI member was underway.
The counsel for Google opposed the petition on several grounds and claimed there was no material to justisy invocation of the “doctrine of necessity”.
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#Delhi #reserves #order #plea #startups #Googles #payment #policy
( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

April 19, 2023
Excise policy scam: Delhi court extends Sisodia’s judicial custody by 2 weeks

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New Delhi: A court here on Monday extended former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia’s judicial custody by two weeks in connection with the excise policy case being investigated by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
Before the bench of special judge M.K. Nagpal of the Rouse Avenue Court, the ED had earlier submitted that Sisodia had planted fabricated e-mails to show that there was a public approval for the policy.
“We have evidence that Sisodia had e-mails planted. These have been received not only in the official e-mail account of the Excise Department but even in his personal e-mail account. The content of the e-mails was given by Sisodia which suited his agenda,” the counsel for the ED had told while opposing the bail plea.

“Fabricated e-mails were sent to show that there was a public approval of the policy. This is a sham approvala Illegal ecosystem was created to give benefits to the liquor cartels in lieu of kickbacks.”
The ED’s special public prosecutor Zoheb Hossain had then told the judge that the agency wanted to show him the case diary.
To this, Sisodia’s counsel had said that it should not be done so in secrecy.
“Sealed cover business should go. If something is used against me to deny me my libertya If they are relying on something behind my backa It should be put to me as well,” the counsel said.
However, the probe agency said that the 60 days to complete the investigation against him are not over yet.

The ED said: “We will put it to you after 60 days.”
The court then adjourned the hearing in bail matter for Tuesday.
On April 5, the ED had informed Judge Nagpal that it has found fresh evidence indicating Sisodia’s involvement in the alleged excise scam, and the investigation is at a crucial stage.
The court had extended AAP leader’s custody till April 17 in this case.
On March 21, Sisodia had moved a plea seeking bail plea in ED’s case.
After the CBI arrested the AAP leader on February 26, the ED also arrested him in the same case on March 9.
The probe agency had earlier claimed that within a span of one year, 14 phones have been destroyed and changed, and that Sisodia has been evasive from the start.
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#Excise #policy #scam #Delhi #court #extends #Sisodias #judicial #custody #weeks
( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

April 17, 2023
CBI asked me about 56 questions; entire excise policy case is false: Arvind Kejriwal

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New Delhi: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday said the CBI asked him around 56 questions regarding the excise policy case and he answered them all.
“I want to say that the entire excise policy case is false. They do not have any evidence that the AAP is wrong. It’s a result of dirty politics,” he told reporters.
#WATCH | CBI questioning conducted for 9.5 hours. Entire alleged liquor scam is fake, AAP is ‘kattar imaandaar party’. They want to finish AAP but the country’s people are with us…: Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal speaks after nine hours of CBI questioning in excise policy case pic.twitter.com/ODnCGKv7R3
— ANI (@ANI) April 16, 2023
He was speaking to the media at his residence after around nine hours of questioning by the probe agency.

“AAP is a kattar honest party. We did nothing wrong. They asked me 56 questions. The total case is fake. They don’t have anything against us. No evidence. The entire case is bad politics,” Kejriwal said.
As of now, no date has been given to Kejriwal for the second round of questioning.
Thanking the CBI officials for their “hospitality”, Kejriwal said, “They asked me questions in a friendly and harmonious manner. I answered all the questions asked by them.”
“The CBI asked around 56 questions regarding the excise policy, including when and why the policy was started,” he added.
The AAP chief, who arrived at the heavily fortified agency headquarters at around 11 am in his official black SUV, was taken to the first-floor office of the Anti Corruption Branch where he was quizzed by the investigation team, officials said.

A team of senior officials recorded his statement. The CBI has filed a charge sheet in the matter and now they are all set to file a supplementary charge sheet.
Kejriwal was asked about AAP leader Vijay Nair, businessman Sameer Mahendru and how the policy got leaked before it was implemented.
Delhi’s then Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia was arrested by the CBI and the ED in the case and is presently behind bars.
The Delhi Police had imposed Section 144 in and around the CBI’s headquarters to avoid any problems and detained 1,305 AAP workers.
(With inputs from agencies)

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#CBIasked #questions #entire #excise #policy #case #false #Arvind #Kejriwal
( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

April 16, 2023
SAD chief alleges ‘scam’ in Punjab’s excise policy, seeks questioning of CM Mann

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Jalandhar: SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal on Sunday alleged a “scam” in the Punjab government’s excise policy, seeking that Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann be questioned in the matter like his counterpart in Delhi.
He alleged that the Punjab excise policy had been “patterned” on the Delhi excise policy.
“Just like in the Delhi policy, the AAP government in Punjab created a monopoly in the liquor trade by handing over the entire business to a few contractors,” Badal said.

“While the scam had been exposed in Delhi, the AAP continued to loot the public exchequer in Punjab as it had extended the excise policy by another year,” he further alleged in a statement issued here.
Badal said only a CBI inquiry and a thorough questioning of the Punjab chief minister can “unmask this scam”.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was questioned by the CBI on Sunday in the excise policy case, amid protests by his party as the AAP chief accused the agency of acting at the behest of the BJP.
In a five-minute video message on Twitter before arriving at the heavily fortified headquarters of the Central Bureau of Investigation at around 11 am, Kejriwal claimed that the BJP might have ordered the agency to arrest him.
AAP leader Manish Sisodia was arrested on February 26 after nearly eight hours of questioning in the case.

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#SAD #chief #alleges #scam #Punjabs #excise #policy #seeks #questioning #Mann
( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

April 16, 2023
Delhi excise policy: Kejriwal to appear before CBI today, AAP to stage protest

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New Delhi: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal will appear before the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Sunday for questioning in connection with the case pertaining to alleged irregularities in the framing and implementation of the excise policy of the Union Territory government.
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann would accompany Kejriwal to the CBI office on Sunday morning.
During his visit to the CBI office, Kejriwal’s cabinet colleagues and all the MPs of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) will also accompany him to the CBI office.

In a major development in the Delhi excise policy case, the CBI summoned Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for questioning in connection with the liquor policy case on Sunday.
According to sources, Aam Aadmi Party will stage a protest in the national capital during the questioning of party chief Kejriwal at the CBI office on Sunday.
“If Arvind Kejriwal is corrupt then there is no one in this world who is honest,” Delhi Chief Minister said on Saturday, a day after CBI summoned him for questioning in connection with the excise policy case.
Addressing a press conference, he said, “Tomorrow, they (CBI) have called me and I will definitely go. If Arvind Kejriwal is corrupt then there is no one in this world who is honest… If BJP has ordered CBI to arrest me, then CBI will obviously follow their instructions.”
Later, taking to Twitter, Kejriwal said appropriate cases will be filed against Central Bureau of Investigation and Enforcement Directorate officials for “perjury and producing false evidence in courts.

“We will file appropriate cases against CBI and ED officials for perjury and producing false evidence in courts,” he tweeted.
Kejriwal also claimed that he knew he would be next in line to be summoned by the CBI since the day he spoke against corruption in the Delhi assembly.
Former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, a key aide of Kejriwal, is in jail over alleged irregularities in the excise case.
Sisodia was arrested by ED and CBI in the ongoing investigation of a case related to alleged irregularities in the framing and implementation of the excise policy in Delhi.
The CBI arrested Sisodia on February 26. Later on March 9, the ED arrested him, after hours of questioning at Tihar Jail.
The ED and the CBI had alleged that irregularities were committed while modifying the excise policy, undue favours were extended to licence holders, the licence fee was waived or reduced and the L-1 licence was extended without the competent authority’s approval.
The beneficiaries diverted “illegal” gains to the accused officials and made false entries in their account books to evade detection, the probe agencies said.
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#Delhi #excise #policy #Kejriwal #CBI #today #AAP #stage #protest
( With inputs from www.siasat.com )

April 16, 2023