Delhi excise policy scam: AAP leader Manish Sisodia walks out of jail after 17 months

New Delhi: Senior AAP leader and former Delhi minister Manish Sisodia walked out of Tihar Jail after 17 months behind bars on Friday and said he got bail due to the power of the Constitution and democracy, and this same power will ensure the release of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.

Earlier in the day, the Supreme Court gave the former deputy chief minister bail in corruption and money laundering cases linked to the Delhi excise policy "scam" case and said his long incarceration without trial had deprived him of the right to speedy justice. Kejriwal, who is the national convenor of the AAP, is also in Tihar jail in the same case.

Sisodia, who was wearing a maroon shirt, greeted the party workers and leaders, who showered rose petals on him as he walked out of the jail. The court granted him bail, noting that he has been in custody for 17 months.

"We have brought this legal battle to its logical end through the Constitution. I thank you all for being with me," Sisodia said and added that he had many of admirers but their numbers have increased in the last 17 months.

"Not only me but every person of Delhi, and children of the country were with me emotionally in jail. I thank the Supreme Court from the bottom of my heart for using the power of Constitution to give a tight slap to the dictatorship in the country," he said.

Hailing Baba Saheb Ambedkar, Sisodia said he was indebted to him. "My whole life is indebted to Ambedkar," he said.

The leader said it was an emotional moment for everyone and hoped that the power of Constitution and democracy will pave the way for release of Kejriwal. He raised the slogan, "Bhrasthachaar ka ek hi kaal, Kejriwal, Kejriwal".

Sisodia was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on February 26 last year for purported irregularities in the formulation and implementation of the now-scrapped Delhi excise policy 2021-22. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested him in the money laundering case stemming from the CBI FIR on March 9 last year. He resigned from the Delhi cabinet on February 28 in 2023.

Sisodia had sought bail contending that he has been in custody for 17 months and the trial against him has not yet started. The ED and the CBI had opposed his bail pleas.