While granting bail to senior Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Manish Sisodia in the corruption and money laundering cases linked to the alleged Delhi excise policy scam, the apex court said he has been deprived of his right to speedy justice as he is incarcerated for around 17 months and trial has not yet started.
New Delhi: Aam Aadmi Party leader Manish Sisodiya walked out of Tihar Jail on Friday after seventeen months of jail term. For the unversed, the Supreme Court earlier granted him bail in the the corruption and money laundering cases linked to the alleged Delhi excise policy scam.
AAP leader Manish Sisodia says, “I have come out of jail due to your love, God’s blessings & power of truth, and biggest of all, the dream of Babasaheb that if any dictatorial government comes to power and puts Opposition leaders behind bars by forming dictatorial laws, then this country’s Constitution will protect them…I assure you that with this power of the Constitution, Arvind Kejriwal will come out of jail as well…”
The right to speedy trial and liberty are “sacrosanct”, and prolonged incarceration before being pronounced guilty of an offence should not be permitted to become “punishment without trial”, the Supreme Court said on Friday.
While granting bail to senior Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Manish Sisodia in the corruption and money laundering cases linked to the alleged Delhi excise policy scam, the apex court said he has been deprived of his right to speedy justice as he is incarcerated for around 17 months and trial has not yet started.
“As observed by this court, the right to speedy trial and the right to liberty are sacrosanct rights,” a bench of Justices B R Gavai and K V Viswanathan said.
Watch:
VIDEO | AAP leader Manish Sisodia (@msisodia), granted bail by Supreme Court, walks out of Tihar Jail after 17 months. pic.twitter.com/C9xb2Ao5lE
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) August 9, 2024
“We find that on account of a long period of incarceration running for around 17 months and the trial even not having been commenced, the appellant (Sisodia) has been deprived of his right to speedy trial,” the bench said in its 38-page verdict.
Supreme Court Grants Bail To Manish Sisodiya
Referring to an earlier judgment of the top court, the bench noted the objective to keep a person in judicial custody pending trial or disposal of an appeal was to secure his attendance at trial.
“As observed time and again, the prolonged incarceration before being pronounced guilty of an offence should not be permitted to become punishment without trial,” it said. The apex court said Sisodia was having deep roots in the society and there was no possibility of him fleeing away from the country and not being available for facing the trial.
“In any case, conditions can be imposed to address the concern of the state,” it said.
Dealing with the apprehension raised by the counsel appearing for the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) regarding the possibility of tampering the evidence, the bench observed the cases against Sisodia largely depends on documentary evidence which was already seized by the prosecution.
“As such, there is no possibility of tampering with the evidence. Insofar as the concern with regard to influencing the witnesses is concerned, the said concern can be addressed by imposing stringent conditions upon the appellant,” it said.
While granting him bail, the bench said Sisodia shall surrender his passport with the special trial court and shall report to the investigating officer on every Monday and Thursday between 10 and 11 am.
“The appellant shall not make any attempt either to influence the witnesses or to tamper with the evidence,” it said.
After the bench pronounced its verdict, Additional Solicitor General S V Raju, who represented the CBI and ED, urged that same conditions as was imposed by the apex court on Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal while granting him interim bail in the excise policy related money laundering case be imposed on Sisodia.
While releasing Kejriwal on interim bail on May 10 to campaign for the Lok Sabha polls, the top court had imposed conditions that he will not visit the CM office or the Delhi Secretariat during the interim relief. When Raju read out the conditions, Justice Gavai said, “We are not inclined.”
“We have imposed conditions to address your concern,” Justice Gavai told the law officer. Raju said if there was any tampering with evidence, the probe agencies may move for cancellation of bail granted to Sisodia.
“That is always there,” Justice Gavai said, adding, “In the matters of liberty, every day counts.”
The former deputy chief minister of Delhi was arrested by the CBI on February 26, 2023 for the purported irregularities in the formulation and implementation of the now-scrapped Delhi excise policy 2021-22. The ED arrested him in the money laundering case stemming from the CBI FIR on March 9, 2023. He resigned from the Delhi cabinet on February 28, 2023.
(With inputs from agencies)