On a day when AAP leader Manish Sisodia’s bail was rejected by the Supreme Court, the Enforcement Directorate issued summons to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, asking him to appear for questioning on November 2 in the Delhi excise case.
Earlier, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), on whose FIR the ED began its money laundering probe, examined Kejriwal on April 16 following allegations that he was party to the decision to increase profit margin from 5% to 12% for liquor wholesalers, and that AAP also used the kickback to fund its Goa assembly elections of 2022. Besides, the ED is also probing policy formulation lapses which potentially resulted in the liqour businessmen and other stakeholders exploiting the rules to their benefit.
The directorate officially neither confirmed nor denied the development but sources stated that the Delhi CM has been invited for questioning on November 2. The ED is also exploring making the AAP an accused in the case -- a move about which the anti-money laundering investigation agency had informed the Supreme Court around the middle of this month.
In this, the excise case, Delhi’s Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, AAP MP Sanjay Singh, and others are behind bars. The ED has alleged that a ₹100 crore bribe was paid to the AAP for tweaking excise policy to the benefit of the liqour lobby.