CBI books Manish Sisodia in Delhi govt’s Feedback Unit case

CBI has registered a fresh case against former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and others over alleged irregularities in the Delhi governtment's 'Feedback Unt- FBU'. The Agency has registered an FIR against six persons including Manish Sisodia and other unknown persons in connection with the snooping case.The accused in the case have been booked on charges including criminal conspiracy, dishonest misappropriation of property, criminal breach of trust by a public servant and forgery for the purpose of cheating. The FBU was formed by the AAP government after coming to power in Delhi in 2015.

The agency has booked Sisodia, a 1992-batch IRS officer Sukesh Kumar Jain who was then secretary of vigilance, retired CISF DIG Rakesh Kumar Sinha who was working as special advisor to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and joint director in the Feedback Unit, they said.The CBI has registered a fresh case against former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and others over alleged irregularities in the Delhi government's 'Feedback Unit- FBU'. The Agency has registered an FIR against six persons including Manish Sisodia and other unknown persons in connection with the snooping case. The accused in the case have been booked on charges including criminal conspiracy, dishonest misappropriation of property, criminal breach of trust by a public servant and forgery for the purpose of cheating. The FBU was formed by the AAP government after coming to power in Delhi in 2015. Earlier, former Deputy Chief Minister Sisodia was arrested by the CBI on February 26 in connection with alleged corruption in the formulation and implementation of the now-scrapped Delhi excise policy for 2021-22. Later, the Enforcement Directorate also arrested him in connection with its money laundering probe into alleged irregularities in the Delhi excise policy case.

The CBI, in its preliminary enquiry report, has alleged that Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal moved the proposal in a Cabinet meeting in 2015, regarding setting up the unit but no agenda note was circulated. No sanction from the Lt Governor was taken for appointments in the Feedback Unit, it alleged. “The Feedback Unit, in addition to collecting the mandated information, also collected political intelligence/intelligence qua miscellaneous issues,” the CBI said in its preliminary enquiry report. Prima facie, the agency noted, there was a deliberate violation of rules, guidelines and circulars by “delinquent public servants.

According to the CBI, 60 per cent of the reports generated by the Feedback Unit pertained to vigilance and corruption matters, while “political intelligence” and other issues accounted for around 40 per cent. “The scrutiny of such reports during the period from February 2016 to the early part of September 2016 shows that a substantial number of reports submitted by FBU officials related not to actionable feedback or information on corruption in any department, institute, entity etc. under GNCTD but related to political activities of persons, political entities and political issues touching political interest of Aam Aadmi Party, BJP, which was beyond the scope and ambit of functions of the Feedback Unit,” the CBI has alleged. The CBI said the Feedback Unit was functioning for some “hidden purpose” which was not in the interest of the GNCTD but “private interest of the AAP and Manish Sisodia”, who played an active role in the creation of the unit, flouting the established rules of GNCTD and MHA in connivance with Sukesh Kumar Jain, the then vigilance secretary.