The Supreme Court order granting bail to Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Singh shows that “truth alone triumphs”, said the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Tuesday as it hailed the leader’s release from jail six months after he was arrested in an excise policy case.
However, the BJP said the AAP leader’s release does not mean that he has been given a “clean chit”. It also said that the court order underscores the judiciary’s independence, contrary to the claims made by the Opposition leaders.
‘Money laundering’
Mr. Singh was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on October 4 last year in a money laundering case involving allegations that the now-scrapped Delhi excise policy for 2021-22 was formulated and implemented to favour certain liquor manufacturers, wholesalers, and retailers in exchange for money.
His release came a day after a Delhi court sent Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to judicial custody till April 15 in the same case.
Former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia has been in judicial custody for over a year in the excise policy case.
Delhi Finance Minister Atishi said, “The bail order has proven that truth alone triumphs. It has shown that one can suppress the truth but cannot erase it.”
Health Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj told reporters that no recovery has been made by probe agencies in connection with the case and that the ED arrested Mr. Singh on the basis of only one statement. “When the SC questioned the ED over it, they had no answer,” he said.
‘Waiting for 3 brothers’
Meanwhile, Mr. Singh’s wife Anita Singh said she was not completely happy as her “three brothers” — Mr. Kejriwal, Mr. Sisodia, and former Health Minister Satyendar Jain — are still in jail.
“The real celebration would be when my three brothers return. It is going to be a long battle but we hope that the judiciary will provide relief to them,” she said as AAP workers gathered outside her house with dhols to celebrate.
Mr. Singh’s mother Radhika Singh also thanked the top court. “We have been waiting for this moment for long. My son is innocent. He should not have been arrested,” she added.
‘ED didn’t oppose bail’
Reacting to the development, Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said Mr. Singh got bail as the ED did not oppose it.
He also junked the allegations that the judiciary is being pressurised by the Centre.
“If the judiciary had been ours, then why did they call out such a good scheme of electoral bonds as unconstitutional? This is the speciality of our democracy. Courts are independent,” he added.
BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla said, “From now on, AAP cannot claim that the ED is working in a vindictive manner since it did not oppose Sanjay Singh’s bail. Moreover, AAP celebrating Mr. Singh’s bail proves that others in custody in the case are guilty.”
