The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday raided at least 35 locations in Delhi, Punjab in connection with the national capital's liquor excise policy. Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia is an accused in an FIR registered by the CBI in connection with alleged irregularities in the formulation and implementation of the Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22.

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday had said hundreds of raids by central agencies to find evidence against Sisodia have yielded nothing as he didn't do anything. Time of hundreds of sleuths of the ED and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is being wasted for "dirty politics", he said.

The ED has conducted more than 103 raids in this case so far. The excise policy came under the scanner after Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena recommended a CBI probe into it.

On Thursday, a special court sent businessman and AAP communication in-charge Vijay Nair to two weeks' judicial custody in connection with the case. According to the prosecution, Nair entered into a criminal conspiracy with others as part of which the excise policy of the government of the national capital territory of Delhi (GNCTD) of 2021-2022 was framed and implemented.

The motive was to provide undue and illegal favours to liquor manufacturers and distributors at the cost of the government exchequer and the policy resulted in a huge revenue loss to the government, the prosecution claimed. The CBI had registered an FIR against the accused public servants, including Sisodia, and other named and unnamed persons under the relevant sections of the IPC and Prevention of Corruption Act.

With inputs from PTI

First Published:Oct 7, 2022 9:31 AM IST