Delhi Court fixes April 5 for hearing Sisodia’s bail plea hearing; ED files reply

The Rouse Avenue Court set April 5 for a hearing on former Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi Manish Sisodia’s bail application in a money laundering case involving alleged irregularities in the formulation and implementation of the Government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi’s excise policy (GNCTD).

The Enforcement Directorate filed a lengthy reply opposing bail in court on Saturday. The matter was adjourned for April 5 by Special Judge MK Nagpal, who asked the ED and served a copy of the response on Sisodia’s lawyer. Sisodia is currently in Judicial Custody in an ED case related to the Excise case until April 5.

Previously, while placing Sisodia on ED remand, The court stated that an investigation into an ED case is a complicated matter, and given the complexities of the case, the multiplicity of persons/accused involved in the commission of the alleged offence of money laundering, and the massive volume of records or data seized during the investigation and required to be analysed by the Investigating Agency, it is bound to take some time, and the IO or Investigating Agency cannot be faulted or blamed.

Earlier this week, advocates Zohaib Hossain testified before the ED that massive amounts of mail and mobile data were being forensically analysed. The mobile phone, which Sisodia had been using for a long time, was changed the day LG wrote to the CBI and was submitted.

Counsel for the ED also claimed that the statements were validated by the recovery of data from the arrestee’s computer. During the interpretation, mobile data, email data, and cloud data were also received.