AAP MLAs stood and saluted their party leader, Manish Sisodia, in the Delhi Assembly. During his address in the assembly, Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal lauded Sisodia's courage, stating, "He did what no other government could do. History is witness that when such people come and challenge the system, such injustice is done to them."
This tribute coincides with the one-year anniversary of the arrest of former Deputy CM Manish Sisodia. Following his speech at the Vidhan Sabha assembly, AAP National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal is slated to visit the Mahatma Gandhi memorial.
On February 26, 2023, Manish Sisodia was apprehended by the CBI after several rounds of interrogation, and a month later, by the Directorate of Enforcement in connection with the excise policy case. Sisodia has remained in custody since then, tendering his resignation from the Delhi cabinet on February 28.
Despite receiving the seventh summons from the Directorate of Enforcement, Arvind Kejriwal has opted not to appear before the agency. AAP party sources conveyed, "The matter is in court, with the next hearing scheduled for March 16. Instead of issuing daily summons, the ED should await the court's decision. We stand firm in the INDIA alliance. The Modi government should not exert pressure in this manner," as reported by ANI.
The ED issued the seventh summons to the Delhi Chief Minister on February 22, urging his presence before the agency.
Previously, the ED had issued the sixth summons on February 14 in the money laundering case related to irregularities in the Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22, requesting Kejriwal's cooperation in joining the investigation by February 19. Kejriwal has repeatedly missed these summons, with the ED subsequently issuing fresh ones.
During the fifth summons, Kejriwal denounced them as "illegal and politically motivated," asserting his willingness to cooperate while alleging the agency's intention to impede his election campaigning. He has skipped the previous six summons issued by the ED on various dates. The summons aim to record Kejriwal's statement regarding the policy formulation, pre-finalization meetings, and allegations of bribery. Two senior AAP leaders, including former Deputy CM Manish Sisodia and Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Singh, are already under judicial custody in the case. Singh was arrested by the ED on October 5 to further the money laundering probe.
The Delhi government introduced the Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22 on November 17 but rescinded it by the end of September 2022 amid corruption allegations.