Delhi liquor policy case: BJP, CBI 'conspiring' to keep Arvind Kejriwal in jail

The Aam Aadmi Party AAP alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party BJP and the Central Bureau of Investigation CBI are conspiring to keep Chief Minister CM Arvind Kejriwal imprisoned in connection with the Delhi excise policy case news agency PTI reported on SaturdayCBI and BJP have not yet responded to AAPs allegationsSenior AAP leaders Manish Sisodia and Atishi claimed that the central agency requested additional time from the Supreme Court to respond to Kejriwals bail plea yet leaked the response to the mediaSisodia expressed his concerns on X formerly Twitter and stated The CBI claimed in court that its response to the bail plea wasnt ready and asked for a 14day extension for the hearing However on the same day the CBIs response was shared with the media turning it into a onesided headline BJP CBI CBI 14 CBI hellipmdash Manish Sisodia msisodia August 24 2024He further accused the CBI of acting as BJPs puppet in their effort to keep Kejriwal behind barsSisodia asserted that the strategies employed for headline management would ultimately fail as truth and justice would prevail While he acknowledged that the agencies may be influenced by political motives he emphasised that the Constitution and justice side with the truthOn Friday the Supreme Court postponed the hearing of Kejriwals bail plea in the Delhi excise policy case to September 5 following CBIs request for more time to submit their affidavitKejriwal has filed two petitions one challenging the denial of bail and the other contesting his arrest by CBI in the Delhi excise policy caseIn a detailed affidavit responding to Kejriwals challenge of his arrest CBI claimed that all major decisions regarding the nowretracted excise policy were made under the direction of the Delhi CM in collaboration Sisodia who was then the Deputy CMAt a press conference Atishi also criticised CBI and accused the agency of dishonesty in the Supreme Court to keep Kejriwal in jail longerCBIs affidavit was ready but they misled the Supreme Court just to keep Arvind Kejriwal in jail for a few more days Atishi saidShe questioned how the affidavit which the CBI claimed would take a week to complete was already published in newspapers She argued that it indicated a conspiracy by CBI to extend Kejriwals imprisonmentAtishi also reiterated the belief that despite BJPs efforts the truth would ultimately prevail drawing a parallel with the case of Sisodia who received relief from the Supreme CourtShe expressed confidence that Kejriwal would soon be released from jail and that any conspiracy orchestrated by BJP through CBI and Enforcement Directorate ED would failKejriwal was first arrested by ED on March 21 in a money laundering case related to the excise policy He was granted bail by the trial court on June 20 but this order was overturned by the Delhi High Court the next day Kejriwal then appealed to the Supreme Court on June 22 but was arrested by CBI four days later in connection with the excise policy case The Supreme Court later granted him bail on July 11 in the money laundering case filed by EDWith PTI inputs