Excise policy: Delhi HC to hear on Monday Kejriwal, Sisodia's pleas challenging charge sheet cognisance

The Delhi High Court on Monday will hear petitions by AAP leaders Arvind Kejriwal and Manish Sisodia against the trial court's decision to take cognisance of the Enforcement Directorate's charge sheet filed in alleged excise policy scam.

The petitions, filed in 2024, are listed for hearing before Justice Ravinder Dudeja.

According to the former Delhi chief minister, the special court took cognisance of the charge sheet filed in a money laundering case linked to the scam in the absence of any sanction for his prosecution, which was required as he was a public servant when the alleged offence was committed.

Similar objections have been raised by the former deputy chief minister as well. Sisodia said in his petition that since the allegations against him related to official acts carried out by him as a public servant, prior sanction to prosecute was required.

Besides seeking to set aside the trial court's order, Kejriwal has also sought quashing of all proceedings in the case.

The high court issued notice to the ED on Kejriwal's petition on November 21, 2024, and refused to stay the trial court proceedings at that stage. Notice was issued on Sisodia's petition to the agency on December 2, 2024.

While Kejriwal was granted interim bail by the Supreme Court on July 12, 2024, in the money laundering case, the apex court released him on bail in the CBI case on September 13, 2024.

Sisodia was granted bail by the Supreme Court on August 9, 2024, in the cases lodged by the ED and the CBI.

According to the CBI and the ED, irregularities were committed while modifying the excise policy and undue favours were extended to the licence holders.

The Delhi government implemented the policy on November 17, 2021, and scrapped it by September 2022 amid allegations of corruption.

The money laundering case stems from a CBI case lodged after Delhi Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena recommended a probe into the alleged irregularities in the implementation of the excise policy.