NEW DELHI: The Delhi Lieutenant Governor’s secretariat has forwarded to the Delhi Chief Secretary a request made by three Congress leaders to book former Deputy CM Manish Sisodia under sedition charges for his alleged involvement in creating the Feedback Unit (FBU) which is under scrutiny for carrying out political espionage, officials said on Monday.
The request was made by former MP Sandeep Dikshit and ex-ministers Mangat Ram Singhal and Prof Kiran Walia on February 28. In a joint letter, they said that while sanction has been given to investigate Sisodia under the Prevention of Corruption Act, he should also be booked under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) since it is a clear case of sedition.
“To acquire a capacity to listen to conversations, gather intelligence and information and to ‘spy’ on people and institutions in the National Capital Territory that includes the Government of India, the defence establishments, intelligence agencies of the Union Government etc, is a clear case of sedition,” the letter read.
It further added, “While we are not lawyers, we believe that this invokes the UAPA, or similar acts and the CBI and NIA must be directed to investigate under laws governing sedition and anti-national activities and as evidence of wrongdoing has already been found, the CM concerned and ministers of Delhi Government and officials must be prosecuted under such sedition and anti-national laws as may be found applicable in this (sic).”
Last month, the Union Home Ministry gave the CBI its nod to prosecute Sisodia under the Prevention of Corruption Act related to the creation of the FBU in 2015 which has been embroiled in controversy for allegedly carrying out illegal surveillance on AAP’s political opponents, bureaucrats and members of the judiciary.
Last month, Saxena had given approval to the CBI to file a case in the matter. Reacting to the development, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) said in an official statement, “Let L-G say it on record and we will sue him for defamation. He is a criminal who assaulted a lady, Medha Patkar, and is being tried for the same in a Gujarat court. He has no sense of the constitutional post that he holds.”