‘No grand conspiracy or criminal intent’: Why court acquits Arvind Kejriwal and Manish Sisodia in Delhi GST policy case

New Delhi: Rouse Avenue court on Friday freed former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwalformer deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia and 21 others refuse to admit the fact in Delhi GST policy case industrial and commercial bankfee schedule.The order was passed by Jitender Singh, Special Judge (PC Law), Rouse Avenue Court.

Why Delhi Court quashed judgment KejriwalSisodia?

The Delhi court held that there was no “compelling” evidence against Kejriwal and no “prima facie” evidence against Sisodia or the other accused. A PTI report quoted the judge as saying that the court quashed the CBI saying “there was no grand conspiracy or criminal intent in the GST policy”.It noted that the “substantial” charge sheet submitted by the agency contained flaws and was not corroborated by evidence or witness testimony.PTI quoted the judge as saying: “…the chargesheet contains internal contradictions that touch upon the roots of conspiracy theories.”The court observed that the charges against Kejriwal could not be sustained in the absence of evidence and the former chief minister was implicated without any convincing material.The order said the charges were “without judicial review” and Manish Sisodia was found to have “no criminal intent”. It added that conspiracy theories “cannot stand up to a constitutional authority.”The court also strongly criticized the investigative approach adopted by the CBI, particularly its reliance on the statements of the approvers. It noted that it would be inappropriate to pardon a defendant, turn him into an approver, and then use his statements to fill gaps in the investigation or to co-opt other defendants.Also read: ‘I am kattar imaandaar’: Arvind Kejriwal breaks down after clearing his name in Delhi excise policy case“It would be a gross violation of constitutional principles if allowed,” the court said. “It would be wrong to pardon an accused and then approve his statement to fill gaps in the investigation/narrative so that more people could be charged.”The court held that the prosecution’s theory was based on “speculation rather than concrete evidence” and failed to withstand judicial review. The judge concluded that no prima facie case was established against any of the 23 defendants and ordered their release.The court also said it would recommend a departmental probe against the CBI officials for making civil servant Kuldeep Singh the prime accused in the case. “No material has been found against you. I am surprised why you have been implicated,” ANI quoted the judge as saying.Vivek Jain, lawyer for AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal, said the court had scrutinized the records.“The court said that it has scrutinized all the evidence produced by the CBI and no allegation can be said to be beyond the threshold of charge. The court has quashed them and said that no allegation can be considered true in the matter. The court also said that formulation of the GST policy was done through institutional safeguards and the style and manner in which the policy was framed cannot be questioned,” he told ANI.The court held that the prosecution’s theory was based on “speculation” rather than “concrete evidence” and failed to withstand judicial review. The judge concluded that no prima facie case was established against any of the 23 defendants and ordered their release.However, sources in the investigative agency told ANI that the CBI will approach the Delhi High Court challenging the verdict of the Rouse Avenue court releasing Kejriwal and Sisodia.Responding to the verdict outside the court, Kejriwal said, “Today, the court released all the accused in this case. We always say that the truth will prevail. We have full confidence in India’s legal system. Amit Shah and Modi jointly planned the biggest political conspiracy to end AAP, and five major leaders of the party were thrown into jail.”“The current CM was dragged out of his house and thrown in jail. Kejriwal is not corrupt. I have only won honesty in my life. Today, the court said Kejriwal, Manish Sisodia and AAP are honest,” he added.Also read: Delhi GST policy case: Former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, former chief minister Manish Sisodia acquitted

What happened to the case?

The case stems from alleged corruption in the Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22 introduced by the Indian government. am admi party (AAP) Government later deposed.The CBI registered an FIR in August 2022 following a complaint by Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena. The agency alleged that there were irregularities in the formulation and implementation of the excise tax policy.According to the Confederation of Indian Industry, the policy is aimed at supporting select private liquor entities by reducing license fees and fixing profit margins, thereby causing kickbacks and financial losses to the Delhi government. The agency further claims that the alleged loopholes were deliberately created after the bidding process to provide an unfair advantage to specific licensees.It alleged that a criminal conspiracy was hatched during the policy formulation process and Rs 100 crore was paid by the “Southern Lobby” to influence the policy.A total of 23 people have been accused, including Arvind Kejriwal, Manish Sisodia, K Kavitha, Kuldeep Singh, Narender Singh, Vijay Nair, Abhishek Boinpally, Arun Ramchandra Pillai, Mootha Goutam, Sameer Mahendru, Amandeep Singh Dhall, Arjun Pandey, Butchibabu Gornatla, Rakesh Joshi, Damodar Prasad Sharma, Prince Kumar, Shanpreet Singh Rayat, Arvind Kumar Singh, Durgesh. Pathak, Amit Arora, Vinod Chauhan, Ashish Mathur and P Sarath Chandra Reddy.