New Delhi: Delhi High Court said Monday it will hold “comprehensive” hearings in the liquor policy discharge case from Oct and not “piecemeal”, noting that the matter is yet to start despite being first taken up this Feb.HC’s remarks came as it refused to first decide on the maintainability of CBI’s challenge against the discharge of AAP’s Arvind Kejriwal, Manish Sisodia and 21 others in the case, as sought by them.Justice Manoj Jain, however, granted four weeks to all discharged accused persons, including the politicians, to respond to written submissions by the investigating agency, as he listed its petition against their discharge on Oct 5 and 6, indicating he won’t grant them more time.On Feb 27, the trial court had discharged the 23 accused, ruling that it was wholly unable to survive judicial scrutiny and stood discredited in its entirety.In its submissions, CBI has faulted the trial court for its discharge order, arguing that it conducted a mini trial with selective factual analysis. The trial court demanded independent corroboration of not only the approver but even other witnesses, such as angadiyas (couriers) at a pre-trial stage, against legal principles, CBI has said.“Instead of appreciating the cumulative effect of the prosecution material, the special judge examined isolated facts, rejected them individually and thereby lost sight of the complete chain of conspiracy. The discharge of several accused on selective appreciation of evidence has resulted in a self-contradictory and legally unsustainable order,” the agency has argued.It has further claimed that documentary evidence “showing manipulation of policy provisions, concealment of beneficial ownership, layering of funds, routing of election money and recovery of kickbacks has either been ignored or assessed on an incorrect factual premise”.During the hearing Monday, the high court said, “Arguments will be heard in a comprehensive manner. No piecemeal. We will start with CBI and end with you (the discharged accused). The arguments will be heard in one go.”Senior advocate N Hariharan, appearing for Kejriwal, pointed out that CBI filed a 103-page written submission before the hearing, raising “substantial grounds”, which were absent in the main petition, and sought four weeks to respond to them.“Are you actually interested in filing a reply?” HC wondered, as it highlighted that the AAP functionaries were yet to do so despite being given several opportunities in the past.Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for CBI, said the request seeking four more weeks for filing replies was “not fair”. He added, “Let them exhaust all pretensions. They were proclaiming this is a brilliant order. I am saying it is not worth the paper it is written on.”“We are giving four weeks to everyone, including those who have already filed. But nothing beyond that. Then we fix the date for beginning arguments from the side of the petitioner (CBI). Week beginning Oct 5,” HC concluded.Kejriwal and Sisodia, who earlier boycotted the proceedings in the case before Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma, have claimed that CBI’s plea was filed with “unprecedented haste” in the “most unserious manner”, and that they have been unable to even discern the agency’s case against them in the “bare-shell” and “non-specific” petition.On the last occasion, Justice Jain had granted a final opportunity to Kejriwal, Sisodia and Durgesh Pathak to respond to CBI’s plea within two weeks and listed it for Aug 17 and 18 to hear the agency’s submissions.
