A clip from a bulletin by News 18 India is going viral on social media, which claims that Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal placed the responsibility for the controversial liquor policy on AAP leader Manish Sisodia. According to the report, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) claimed in the Rouse Avenue Court that Kejriwal had 'put all the blame' for the excise policy on Sisodia, distancing himself from the policy altogether. (Archive)
A clip of an ABP report was also shared by several prominent Right-wing influencers. Tajinder Bagga, the national secretary of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha, tweeted a screenshot from the said report which displayed the text ''केजरीवाल ने सारा दोष सिसोदिया पर डाला' (Translation: Kejriwal put all the blame on Sisodia). The tweet garnered over 70,000 views and close to 800 retweets. (Archive)
Rishi Bagree, who shares misinformation on a regular basis, also tweeted the clip. In it, the ABP reporter is heard saying the CBI levelled the allegations during the proceedings at Rouse Avenue Court. The ABP ground reporter informs viewers that the CBI lawyer argued in court that during the interrogation, Kejriwal had apparently put the blame on Manish Sisodia and claimed that he had no knowledge whatsoever about the liquor policy. Bagree's tweet read, "Manish Sisodia Thrown under a DTC bus." (Archive)
BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla tweeted a screenshot of a tweet by Law Today which also said that the CBI had told the court that Kejriwal had put the onus of the liquor policy on Manish Sisodia while seeking custody for the Delhi CM. (Archive)
Several other users, including @SaffronSunanda and @erbmjha, shared the same claim. (Archives- 1, 2, 3)
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Fact Check
We went through the court proceedings posted through legal reporting handle on X, Bar and Bench. While arguing for the CBI seeking Kejriwal's custody in the court of Special Judge Amitabh Rawat, advocate D P Singh stated at 12:38 PM on June 26, 'We need his custodial interrogation... He is not even recognising that Vijay Nair was working under him. He says he was working under Atishi Marlena and Saurab Bharjdwaj. He pushed the entire onus on Manish Sisodia and said he had no idea about the excise policy'. This is statement was picked up by the media outlets almost immediately and telecast.
However, after an hour and a half, Kejriwal addressed the court and refuted the claims. Kejriwal stated that no statement had been given by him suggesting that Manish Sisodia was guilty. "Manish Sisodia is innocent, AAP is innocent, I am innocent. The entire plan is to tarnishing us in front of the media," he said.
In the following tweets in the thread, Bar and Bench reported that Advocate Singh argued that no CBI sources had said anything to the media and that the media persons would report on what was said in court. The court argued that media reports were taken in pieces. Kejriwal further stated that the prosecution's idea was that the next day's front page should have the top headline stating that Kejriwal put all the blame on Manish Sisodia.
The court, in agreement with Kejriwal, remarked that the Manish Sisodia allegation did not stand as Kejriwal did not say anything remotely similar to what was being claimed. In response, Kejriwal stated, "They are sensationalizing the issue. This will be the top headline in every newspaper tomorrow. This is their sole purpose today." The court then added, "The more that is said, the more it will appear in the media. I have read your statement; you did not say this."
The same was reported by another legal reporting platform Live Law, in their report.
Thus, a statement made by CBI lawyer D P Singh -- that Kejriwal had put the blame for the liquor policy on Manish Sisodia -- was picked up by the media and telecast without context. This was further amplified by the Right Wing ecosystem. In reality, Kejriwal had subsequently addressed the court and he refuted the charge that he had put all the blame on Manish Sisodia. Presiding judge Amitabh Rawat concurred on this and said, "I have read your statement, you did not say this."
The Rouse Avenue Court sent Kejriwal to 3-day CBI custody.
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