The Delhi High Court has questioned the Enforcement Directorate (ED) over discrepancies in the prosecution sanction against Arvind Kejriwal and Manish Sisodia in the Delhi Excise Policy money laundering case, directing the ED to produce the original sanction file.
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NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court has directed the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to produce the original sanction file authorizing the prosecution of former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and former Deputy CM Manish Sisodia in the Delhi Excise Policy money laundering case.
Justice Ravinder Dudeja passed the order while hearing petitions filed by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders challenging the trial court’s decision to take cognizance of the ED’s prosecution complaint under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
During the hearing, the Court noted an inconsistency in the sanction documents. The Deputy Director (Vigilance), in a letter dated December 30, 2024, had stated that the competent authority had granted sanction to prosecute Kejriwal and Sisodia.
However, the actual sanction order was found to be dated February 14, 2025 — nearly two months later. Taking note of this discrepancy, the Court directed the ED to produce the original sanction file for examination.
“The sanction order placed on record is of subsequent date… On being questioned, the ED’s Special Prosecutor sought time to seek clarification. Let the sanction file be produced,”
the Court ordered.
The Court also allowed the ED to file an additional affidavit clarifying the issue. The matter has been posted for hearing on January 21, 2026.
AAP Leaders Challenge Legality of ED Proceedings
Senior Advocates Rebecca John, N. Hariharan, and Vikram Chaudhari appeared for Kejriwal and Sisodia. They argued that the trial court’s cognizance of the PMLA complaint was illegal, as it was taken without a valid prosecution sanction.
Citing the Supreme Court’s ruling in Enforcement Directorate v. Bibhu Prasad Acharya, John argued that no court can take cognizance of a PMLA complaint without prior sanction under Section 197 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC).
“There can be no omnibus sanction cutting across different statutes. The ED and CBI cases are distinct — they cannot rely on one sanction for both,”
John contended.
She further pointed out that while the CBI’s sanction was granted on August 14, 2024, the trial court took cognizance of the PMLA complaint on July 9, 2024, before any sanction existed.
John also questioned how Solicitor General Tushar Mehta had stated in November 2024 that the ED already possessed the sanction, when in fact, the agency only obtained it months later.
“Not attributing any motive, but the learned Solicitor General was clearly misled into making that statement,”
she said.
In response to the Court’s queries, ED Special Counsel Zoheb Hossain said he would seek clarification regarding the sanction file.
“I will check it up,” Hossain told the Court.
Justice Dudeja then directed:
“Produce the file.”
Background: Delhi Excise Policy Case
The Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22, now scrapped, is at the center of a major corruption and money laundering investigation. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the ED allege that senior AAP leaders, including Kejriwal and Sisodia, manipulated the policy to benefit select liquor traders in exchange for kickbacks.
According to the agencies, the proceeds of crime were allegedly used to fund AAP’s election campaign in Goa.
Kejriwal was arrested by the ED on March 21, 2025, followed by his arrest by the CBI on June 26 — a move his lawyers described as an “insurance arrest.”
He was granted interim bail in the ED case by the Supreme Court on July 12, and later bail in the CBI case on September 13, 2025.
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