Sisodia’s review plea to seek bail in excise case dismissed by Supreme Court

With the review being dismissed, the former deputy chief minister may have to file a curative petition

The Supreme Court has dismissed the review petition filed by former Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia challenging the October 30 decision denying him bail in the Delhi excise case.

Former Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia in his review plea had raised several “errors” in the judgment and sought an open court hearing of his petition. (ANI)

In an order passed on Wednesday, that was uploaded on Thursday, a bench of justices Sanjiv Khanna and SVN Bhatti said, “We have carefully perused the review petitions as also the grounds in support thereof. In our opinion, no case for review of the judgment dated October 30, 2023 is made out.”

Review petitions are heard in chambers by the judges who gave the judgment, if they are available and have not retired. Sisodia in his review plea had raised several “errors” in the judgment and sought an open court hearing of his petition.

Rejecting this prayer, the order said, “Prayer for oral hearing of the review petitions is rejected.”

The October 30 decision had dismissed the bail plea by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader while noting the allegation levelled by Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED) that the now-scrapped excise policy for 2021-22 profited wholesale distributors by ₹338 crore which amounted to a public servant being bribed.

With the review being dismissed, the former deputy CM may have to file a curative petition, the last legal remedy available to a litigant to challenge the correctness of a judicial order. Such a curative petition can be filed only in exceptional circumstances to point out a grave error or a fact that escaped the attention of the judges while giving the judgment.