The saga of Manish Sisodia is a commentary on the state of the nation today. The Delhi deputy chief minister, arrested in connection with the CBI investigations into the Delhi Liquor Scam, is moving heaven and earth to prove he is innocent and yet being subjected to harassment. The Supreme Court has washed its hands of his plea for extrication from the case, and proposed that he should rather move the trial court or the Delhi high court with such a plea. Arvind Kejriwal and Sisodia are the torch-bearers of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), an offshoot of the 2011 anti-corruption movement that made waves in Delhi and captured the imagination of the nation in spectacular ways. Now, the AAP leadership must explain as to how it has reached such a pass in an obvious contradiction of the ideology it upheld. This is serious matter.
As a matter of fact, the AAP government headed by Kejriwal has earned a good name for the way it stood by the common man in Delhi, avoiding to raise taxes and yet implementing a lot of developmental projects there at relatively lower costs. It claims to have avoided cuts/commissions or acceptance of bribes in relation to these projects. Even on the election chessboard, the party emerged winner time and again in Delhi and recently grabbed power in Punjab. Starkly, the Delhi Liquor scam is about alleged receipt of gratification from the liquor lobby — of around Rs 40 crore — via tweaking the new liquor policy for Delhi. This money was likely for use in the party’s Goa assembly polls campaign. The AAP vehemently denies the allegation and insists its aim to redraft the liquor policy was to facilitate more earnings to the state exchequer. Truth could be the first casualty.
When the CBI acts, especially against those opposed to the ruling BJP at the Centre, it is natural that many smell a rat. The apex court had itself termed the central investigation agency a “caged parrot”, meaning its actions are based on the whims and fancies of the central government. CBI is not an independent entity like the judiciary; it is an arm of the Union Home Ministry. The CBI mostly generally targets those against whom the Modi government has an axe to grind; and the opposition parties and their leaders are sitting ducks. Yet, corruption is corruption and AAP leaders should not be encouraged or condoned if they have erred. Fighting elections requires money, but that by itself is not an excuse. That the AAP took money is still in the realm of suspicion. It is up to the CBI to prove it.