Shillong, October 5: During the bail plea hearing of former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, Supreme Court Justice Sanjiv Khanna emphasized that the court’s earlier query was a legal question and not intended to implicate anyone.
As per IANS, Justice Khanna clarified that the question raised by the bench was whether, based on the prosecution’s claims, if person A is not being prosecuted, can persons B or C be prosecuted instead? This question was posed in a legal context.
The Supreme Court resumed hearing Sisodia’s bail applications related to cases filed against him by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) concerning the alleged Excise Policy case.
The bench, consisting of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and S.V.N Bhatti, presided over the proceedings.
Senior Advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, after presenting evidence and statements of the approver, expressed concerns about the “distortion” of the bench’s query by certain media headlines. Singhvi specifically mentioned headlines suggesting that the apex court had questioned why the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) was not included in the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) case by the ED.
Justice Khanna acknowledged these reports but emphasized that media headlines do not influence the court’s decisions.
Additional Solicitor General S.V. Raju, representing the ED, clarified that when asked by the media earlier, he had only stated, “If there is evidence, we will not spare anybody,” regarding the possibility of naming AAP in the PMLA case.
During Wednesday’s bail plea hearing for Sisodia, the bench had inquired why AAP was not listed as an accused when the case revolved around the party’s alleged benefit.