In the Delhi liquor policy case, Former Chief Minister (CM) of Delhi Arvind Kejriwal, his deputy Manish Sisodiya and 21 others have been given clean chit in the corruption case. The court said that the prosecution lacked admissible evidence and failed to prove its case. The court remarked that the CBI’s theory was ‘economically illiterate’. It stated that, there was no overarching conspiracy or criminal intent. At a press conference on Friday, Kejriwal declared himself a ‘kattar imaandaar‘ (staunchly honest) leader.
Delhi liquor policy case
The case dates back to November 2021, when the then Arvind Kejriwal government introduced a Delhi excise policy to revamp and build a structural overhaul of liquor businesses and regulation in Delhi by privatising the trade, increasing state revenue, and enhancing consumer experience. The task to oversee the excise department was given to Delhi Deputy CM Manish Sisodia. Within months of rollout, in July 2022, the Delhi Chief Secretary flagged irregularities in the excise policy. It accused the AAP government officials of accepting bribes and waiving off slashed license fees to favour certain private firms and stakeholders. A year later, the policy was subsequently scrapped in 2022 after the Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena recommended CBI probe into the issue.
Arrest of Kejriwal
As per CBI, Kejriwal was the main conspirator in the case, who demanded kickbacks from business persons in exchange for favours in policy. Many AAP leaders were arrested in the case, including Satyendra Jain in May 2022 and Sisodia in February 2023. The Directorate of Enforcement (ED) arrested Arvind Kejriwal in March 2024. Earlier, he skipped nine summons to appear before the probe agency between October 2023 and March 2024. On March 21, the Delhi High Court refused to grant him anticipatory bail and the ED arrested him shortly. The downfall of the party party began thereafter and BJP won the the 2025 Delhi assembly elections, dethroning the AAP by winning 48 of 70 seats.
