CBI trying to 'maliciously' frame me in Delhi Excise policy case, says Manish Sisodia; central agency reacts

New Delhi: Senior Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Manish Sisodia on Sunday (January 15, 2023) alleged that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) was trying to "maliciously" frame him and seized his computer to falsely implicate him in the Delhi Excise Policy case. In an official statement, Sisodia said that "it appears that there is a scope for implanting, deleting and editing the record in the seized CPU by the team of the CBI for making a frivolous case against me." His statement came after a CBI team descended on his office on Saturday to seek some records related to the Delhi Excise policy case.

"In the absence of recording 'HASH VALUE' during the seizure, the CBI can change the record in the seized CPU as per its convenience to maliciously frame me," Sisodia, who is facing a CBI probe under corruption charges for allegedly tweaking Delhi's now-scrapped liquor policy in favour of dealers, said.

'Hash Value' is essentially an electronic fingerprint. The data within a file is represented through a cryptographic algorithm as a value known as Hash Value. It is a string of data variables and is the key to determining and validating the integrity of the data in question.

"I have clear apprehension that the CBI has seized the CPU to destroy the confidential files/documents stored therein and will implant/edit files in the CPU and use the same to falsely implicate me as my name is not in the CBI chargesheet as an accused with respect to the afore-mention case," the Delhi Deputy Chief Minister added.

आज फिर CBI मेरे दफ़्तर पहुँची है. उनका स्वागत है.
इन्होंने मेरे घर पर रेड कराई, दफ़्तर में छापा मारा, लॉकर तलशे, मेरे गाँव तक में छानबीन करा ली.मेरे ख़िलाफ़ न कुछ मिला हैं न मिलेगा क्योंकि मैंने कुछ ग़लत किया ही नहीं है. ईमानदारी से दिल्ली के बच्चों की शिक्षा के लिए काम किया है. — Manish Sisodia (@msisodia) January 14, 2023

"Though the CBI/ED investigation in the Excise matter has been going on since last August, 2022, it has not led to discovery of any material against me. However, CBI is still continuing with its fishing and roving inquiry in the matter even after the charge sheet has been filed.

"This act clearly demonstrates that no procedural safeguards were complied which would have ensured integrity of electronic documents as mandated under the CBI Manual & IT Act. Therefore, the seizure of the electronic evidence yesterday (Saturday), has lost its authenticity and integrity in the eyes of law," Sisodia added.

The AAP leader stated that his office was closed since it was a second Saturday.

"Some CBI official telephonically informed my PS (personal secretary) to come to the office and open the same. When my PS reached the office at around 3 pm, he saw that a team of CBI officials was already present at my office," Sisodia said in the statement.

The CBI officials allegedly asked him to open the office and to take them to the conference room.

"As they reached the conference room, they saw a computer installed therein, asked my PS to switch it on, assessed the same, and, forthwith, handed over a notice...

"As per the notice, the secretary was requested to produce the CPU of the system installed in my conference room. Thereafter, the CPU from the conference room of my office was seized without following the due procedure laid down," Sisodia alleged in his statement.

The minister also alleged that the notice given to his personal secretary was handwritten.

"The said conduct/act of the CBI Officials also shows their malice whereby the notice was given and immediately the said property was seized that too without following the guidelines," he said.

CBI rejects Manish Sisodia's claims

The central probe agency, however, rejected Sisodia's claims and said it follows the procedure as per the letter of the law while conducting any search or seizure action.

"During any search or seizure, the CBI follows the procedure as per the letter of the law," a CBI spokesperson said.

The CBI had filed its charge sheet in the Delhi excise policy scam case against seven accused on November 25 last year.

Sisodia, named in the agency's FIR, did not figure in the document.

Officials said investigators have kept the probe open into the alleged role of Sisodia and others named in the First Information Report (FIR).

Arrested businessmen Vijay Nair and Abhishek Boinpally were among the seven accused named in the charge sheet.

It is alleged the Arvind Kejriwal-led Delhi government's policy to grant licences to liquor traders was influenced in favour of certain dealers who had allegedly paid bribes for it, a charge strongly refuted by the AAP.

(With agency inputs)