'Political intelligence' collection case: MHA grants sanction to prosecute Sisodia

Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Wednesday (February 22) said the more AAP grew, the more cases would be filed against its leaders, following the MHA’s sanction to the CBI to prosecute him in a case of alleged collection of “political intelligence”.

In a communication to the principal secretary to the Delhi Lieutenant Governor, the home ministry said the sanction to prosecute Sisodia was granted under Section 17 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.

“Filing cases against one’s rivals is a sign of a weak and cowardly person. The more AAP grows, the more cases will be filed against us,” he said in a tweet in Hindi.

CBI should immediately arrest Sisodi: Delhi BJP

The Delhi BJP demanded that the CBI immediately arrest Sisodia, and also probe the role of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in it.

The people of Delhi “welcome” the sanction accorded to the CBI to prosecute Sisodia in a case related to alleged collection of “political intelligence” through a city government department, Delhi BJP working president Virendra Sachdeva said.

“We demand that the CBI immediately arrest Sisodia and the real accused of the snoopgate Arvind Kejriwal should also be probed,” he said.

Early this month, the CBI had said it found in its preliminary inquiry that the feedback unit (FBU) set up by the Delhi government to check corruption allegedly collected “political intelligence” and the agency recommended that an FIR be registered against Sisodia.

Also read: Delhi’s ‘snoopgate’: Feedback Unit is latest flashpoint between AAP, BJP

The Aam Aadmi Party dispensation had proposed setting up the FBU in 2015 to gather relevant information and actionable feedback regarding the working of the various departments and autonomous bodies, institutions and entities falling under the jurisdiction of the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD) and also to do “trap cases”, the CBI said.

Also read: CBI raids Manish Sisodia’s office; AAP leader says agency ‘will find nothing’

The unit started functioning in 2016 with a provision of Rs 1 crore for secret service expenditure, it said.

No sanction from Lt Governor for FBU appointments: CBI

The Central Bureau of Investigation alleged that Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal moved the proposal in a Cabinet meeting in 2015, but no agenda note was circulated. No sanction from the Lt Governor was taken for appointments in the FBU, it claimed.

Also read: Excise case: Manish Sisodia seeks time from CBI to appear for questioning

“The Feedback Unit, in addition to collecting the mandated information, also collected political intelligence/intelligence qua miscellaneous issues,” the CBI said in its preliminary inquiry report.

The CBI registered the preliminary inquiry on a reference from the Delhi government’s vigilance department, which had allegedly detected irregularities in the FBU.

(With agency inputs)