NEW DELHI, Aug 9: Celebrations broke out at the AAP office and the residence of party leader Manish Sisodia on Friday soon after the Supreme Court granted bail to the former deputy chief minister of Delhi.
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Sisodia walked out of Tihar Jail after spending 17 months behind bars in connection with the excise policy case. He will first visit Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s residence and meet his family.
Prepartions were in full swing at Sisodia’s residence to accord him a grand welcome. Party workers were seen decorating the place and the entrance of the residence with garlands and yellow and blue coloured balloons.
Party leaders such as Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh and his wife as well as Delhi Minister Gopal Rai were seen at Sisodia’s residence where the former deputy chief minister’s wife and family members distributed sweets to visitors.
The atmosphere was equally jubilant at the AAP headquarters on the DDU Marg here. Several party leaders and workers, including minister Saurabh Bharadwaj, started streaming in at the headquarters upon receiving the news of Sisodia’s bail and distributed sweets to people gathered there.
AAP supporters carried posters of Sisodia against the backdrop of a school building and raised slogans hailing Sisodia and Kejriwal. Sisodia was in charge of the Delhi government’s education department before his arrest and has been credited by the party for the development of the city’s education sector.
A jubilant AAP supporter wearing a yellow kurta with the AAP’s poll symbol, broom, printed on it, exuding confidence that Sisodia’s release from Tihar would help the party to win “all 70 seats in the Assembly elections”.
Assembly elections in Delhi are due early next year.
“I have come here wearing this kurta, especially for this occasion. This celebration will continue till the Vidhan Sabha elections. Following Sisodia’s release, we are more confident and feel that we will win all 70 seats in the assembly polls,” he said.
Another supporter expressed hope that Kejriwal too would be released from judicial custody soon.
“After Sanjay Singh and Manish Sisodia, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal will also come out of jail soon. Every AAP supporter is happy today and hopeful that the CM will also be released in the coming days,” the supporter said.
Kejriwal was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on March 21 in a money laundering case linked to the alleged excise policy scam. The Supreme Court has granted him interim bail but he is still in jail as the CBI has arrested him in a related matter.
On Saturday, Sisodia will pay homage at Mahatma Gandhi’s memorial at Rajghat and also visit a temple, AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sandeep Pathak told reporters.
Earlier in the day, senior AAP leader and Delhi minister Atishi broke down while sharing the news of Sisodia’s bail during the inauguration ceremony of a school in Naseerpur.
The AAP said the Supreme Court verdict granting bail to Sisodia was a “victory of truth” and hoped that other jailed leaders of the party “will also get justice”. (Agencies)
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