AAP leader Sanjay Singh arrested by ED in Delhi liquor policy case

On Wednesday, Sanjay Singh was questioned by the central probe agency for over 10 hours in connection with the case

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh was arrested on Wednesday by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) following the central agency's searches at his residence in connection with its money laundering probe into alleged irregularities in Delhi excise policy 2021-22.

The probe agency alleged that Singh, who was arrested under Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), played a key role in the formulation and implementation of the now scrapped policy which benefited certain liquor manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers.

In May this year, an ED chargesheet filed against arrested ex-deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia stated that a restaurateur named Dinesh Arora was extremely close to both Singh and Sisodia.

Arora was arrested by the ED in July which claimed that he was a key person in the case.

The agency further alleged that Arora in 2020 received a call from the AAP MP saying that Delhi Assembly elections were approaching and AAP was in need of funds.

ED raids on AAP MP Sanjay Singh

Earlier in the day, AAP had cried foul over the ED searches at Singh's residence.

Chief minister Arvind Kejriwal said,"They have been probing the alleged liquor scam for the last year but nothing has been found yet. Nothing will be found at Sanjay Singh's residence. When someone is staring at defeat, they resort to desperate measures. That is what is happening right now".

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), on the other hand, named Kejriwal as the ‘kingpin’ in the case.

“The public of the nation and Delhi has understood that if there's a kingpin in the Liquor scam it is Arvind Kejriwal on whose indications the Liquor scam in Delhi took place. The accused Dinesh Arora who is a businessman has accepted that at Delhi CM's residence, the meeting was held”, BJP spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia said in a press briefing.

“On the indication of Arvind Kejriwal, Sanjay Singh said to 'give Rs 32 lakhs to the 'Paapi AAP Arajak Apradh Party'. An MP does 'vasooli' sitting at the CM's residence. The Rs 32 lakh amount was given through cheque. There could be crores of rupees and it has come across during the investigation”, he added.