SC grants Sisodia bail, says trial yet to even commence | India News – Times of India

In a big relief to Aam Aadmi Party leader and former deputy CM of Delhi Manish Sisodia, Supreme Court on Friday granted him bail in the corruption and money laundering cases related to changes in Delhi’s excise policy, and paved the way for him to come out of jail 17 months after he was arrested.
“If the govt tries to forcibly put a common individual in jail who speaks against dictatorship, then the Constitution will protect them,” Sisodia told AAP supporters who waited for him outside Tihar jail gate.
Noting that far from being concluded in 6-8 months, trial is yet to even commence, a bench of Justices B R Gavai and K V Viswanathan said it was a fit case to grant bail as prolonged incarceration would amount to violation of his fundamental right to life and liberty which is one of the most sacrosanct rights guaranteed by the Constitution. Sisodia was arrested by CBI on Feb 6, 2023, and was subsequently taken into custody by ED on March 9.

“In the present case, in the ED matter as well as the CBI matter, 493 witnesses have been named. The case involves thousands of pages of documents and over a lakh pages of digitised documents. It is thus clear that there is not even the remotest possibility of the trial being concluded in the near future. In our view, keeping the appellant behind bars for an unlimited period of time in the hope of speedy completion of trial would deprive [him of] his fundamental right to liberty under Article 21 of the Constitution. As observed time and again, prolonged incarceration before being pronounced guilty of an offence should not be permitted to become punishment without trial,” the court said.
Though CBI/ED insisted that Sisodia be subjected to the same conditions which were imposed while granting bail to Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal who was asked not to visit his office and Delhi secretariat, the bench turned down the plea. Sisodia, in any case, resigned as minister and does not have an office.
The court directed Sisodia to surrender his passport and report to the IO Mondays and Thursdays. He has to furnish bail bonds for Rs 10 lakh with two sureties of like amount and the court also allowed the probe agency to seek cancellation of bail in case of violation of any condition, including not making any attempts to influence witnesses or to tamper with the evidence.
Travesty of justice if Sisodia sent back to trial court: SC
We find that, on account of a long period of incarceration running for around 17 months and the trial not even having commenced, the appellant has been deprived of his right to speedy trial. As observed by this court, the right to speedy trial and the right to liberty are sacrosanct rights. On denial of these rights, the trial court as well as the high court ought to have given due weightage to this factor,” the court said, setting aside the orders of the trial court and the HC.
This was the third round of litigation on Sisodia’s bail in SC which had in Oct last year rejected his plea. He made a fresh plea before the apex court after being rejected by the trial court and Delhi HC and the court disposed of his plea in June and granted him liberty to revive the petition after filing of chargesheet. Seeking rejection of the third petition for revival of his plea, CBI/ED told the bench that he must first approach the trial court and then HC and finally SC.
The bench, however, rejected the plea and said it would be “travesty of justice” if he was sent back to the trial court for bail. “Relegating the appellant to again approach the trial court and thereafter the high court and only thereafter this court, in our view, would be making him play a game of snake and ladder. The trial court and the HC have already taken a view and in our view, relegating him again to the trial court and the HC would be an empty formality. In a matter pertaining to the life and liberty of a citizen which is one of the most sacrosanct rights guaranteed by the Constitution, a citizen cannot be made to run from pillar to post,” it said.
The court also found that there was no substance in CBI/ED allegations, upheld by the trial court, that the trial was getting delayed because of Sisodia who filed multiple applications.
It noted that none of the applications filed by him was frivolous and the judicial record of the case belied the trial court’s finding that delay was caused by him.
“It could further be seen that, though it has been submitted on behalf of the ED that hundreds of applications have been filed for supply of un-relied upon documents, the record would not substantiate the said position. Though various applications have been filed by different accused persons, insofar as the present appellant is concerned, he has filed only 13 applications in the CBI matter and 14 in the ED matter. It would reveal that some of the applications are for seeking permission to meet his wife or permission to file vakalatnama, to put signature on the documents, seeking permission to sign a cheque etc,” the court said.