On Friday, the Supreme Court of India granted bail to Manish Sisodia, a prominent leader of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and former Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi, following his 17-month-long detention in connection with allegations of corruption and money laundering linked to the purported Delhi excise policy scam. This decision by the apex court represents a significant reaffirmation of the foundational legal principle that bail should be the rule, and imprisonment should be the exception.
Manish Sisodia was initially arrested in February 2023 by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on charges of money laundering arising from his alleged involvement in the now-defunct Delhi liquor policy. Many senior AAP leaders including Arvind Kejriwal, Sanjay Singh, and Satyendra Jain have also been arrested under various provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA). The charges levelled against them encompass purported acts of favouritism towards proprietors and shareholders within the private sector, the dispensation of waivers and reductions in license fees, the proliferation of licenses to new enterprises, and allegations of bribery regarding the grant of liquor licenses.
In its order granting bail, the Supreme Court criticised the lower courts for repeatedly denying Sisodia bail. The bench, comprising Justices BR Gavai and KV Viswanathan, underscored the significance of the legal principle enshrined in the landmark 1977 judgment in the case of State of Rajasthan v Balchand alias Baliya. In that ruling, the Court established that bail should generally be granted unless there exist compelling reasons to refuse it, such as the possibility of the accused absconding, obstructing the course of justice, or intimidating witnesses.