Arvind Kejriwal guilty in eyes of Delhi, says CM Rekha Gupta; Congress sees plot

NEW DELHI: Arvind Kejriwal is guilty before the people of Delhi and that the verdict of the trial court is not the final truth, chief minister Rekha Gupta said, adding, "The truth will ultimately prevail... Portraying this verdict as a clean chit is misleading the public." Her party, BJP, criticised the court's decision as a "miscarriage of justice", highlighting critical past observations of various other courts, including Supreme Court, especially on the role of Manish Sisodia, one of the accused discharged on Friday. The CM raised some questions, saying Delhiites deserve to know the answers. "If the liquor policy was so excellent and revenue-enhancing, why was it withdrawn as soon as the investigation began? Why did the wholesale profit margin increase from 5% to 12%, and who benefited from it? Why were changes made to the licensing structure that later raised serious concerns? Under what circumstances were these changes made, and who was the real beneficiary? The former chief minister (Kejriwal) must answer these questions," she said.Claiming that during the course of the investigation, it emerged that around 160 to 170 mobile phones had been changed over a period of approximately 200 days, she asked. "What was the need to change so many phones?"The CM further said, "The court, in its order, referred to a lack of evidence. Insufficient evidence and being completely innocent are two different things. The legal process is not yet complete, and the matter may go to the high court." Her govt has full respect for the judiciary and honours court decisions, she added.BJP functionary Amit Malviya drew attention to the remarks different courts had made while denying bail to Sisodia — the then deputy chief minister was also in charge of the excise department when the controversial 2020-2021 liquor policy was rolled out before being junked in wake of a hail of corruption charges — to express "astonishment" at the latest turn in the case that has revived the opposition's allegation of misuse of probe agencies by the Centre."This order, in light of the record, so far, raises serious concerns... The legal battle is far from over, but for many citizens, this order raises troubling questions about accountability and justice in high public office," Malviya said.As the length of the judgment, running into 598 pages, and its language became a topic of conversation in party circles, BJP spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi questioned the court's decision to discharge the accused for want of evidence when cognisance of the chargesheet against the accused had been taken earlier. "This is also true that hundreds of mobile phones and SIM cards — evidence in the case — were destroyed," he said, wondering if that might be the reason behind the lack of evidence. CBI will look into such technical issues, Trivedi said.He said that while CBI will decide on its next response, people have already given their verdict by defeating Kejriwal in the 2025 Delhi assembly elections.Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva said that while the judgment indicated a lack of evidence in the case, the investigating agency repeatedly maintained that Kejriwal and Sisodia had been involved in destroying evidence. Details of SIM cards and mobile phones which had allegedly been destroyed were not provided to date, and that this was also mentioned in the court's decision, Sachdeva said. Kejriwal still does not have answers to key questions regarding the excise policy, he added. "If the excise policy was appropriate, why was it withdrawn immediately after the investigation began? What was the objective behind increasing the commission percentage for contractors? Why was a ‘buy one, get one free' scheme introduced?" he asked.Former Delhi BJP president and MP Manoj Tiwari, speaking at a press conference along with Delhi BJP media chief Praveen Shankar Kapoor, said that corruption and corrupt individuals cannot mislead the law for long by destroying evidence. He said that a CBI appeal in the high court may result in the the lower court's decision being overturned.