• Former Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia will be lodged in central jail number-1 of Tihar Prison here after a court remanded him to judicial custody till March 20 in connection with the excise policy case

Delhi's Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia sent to judicial custody till March 20 in liquor policy case, according to media reports.

The CBI on Monday produced former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia before a city court in connection with the excise policy case, reports PTI.

Sisodia was produced before special judge M K Nagpal on expiry of his seven-day custodial interrogation allowed by the court earlier.

At the outset, the counsel for CBI submitted before the court the investigative agenchy was not seeking his custody right now which it may do later.

The CBI accused AAP supporters of 'politicising' the matter.

"An application to send the accused to judicial custody has been filed. It is submitted that the CBI custody is no longer required and the same may be sought later, if required. In view of submission made, the accused is sent to JC till March 20," the court said.

It allowed Sisodia to carry the Bhagavad Gita, spectacles, medicine etc. to jail while directing the Tihar jail authorities to consider his request for being allowed to do Vipassana meditation, reports PTI.

During the hearing, the former minister alleged that he was being subjected to several hours of CBI questioning and dubbed it as mental harassment.

Meanwhile, the AAP on Sunday alleged that the CBI is “mentally torturing and harassing” Sisodia to accept the allegations made against him in the liquor policy case. AAP chief spokesperson and MLA Saurabh Bharadwaj alleged: “The CBI does not have any documentary evidence to prove Sisodia has embezzled even a rupee. Because of lack of evidence, their whole game is to get him to admit to baseless allegations through torture and to sign a false confession one way or another.”

The AAP leader had approached the top court for relief following his arrest. The Supreme Court, however, refused to intervene and asked him to approach the High Court. Sisodia has resigned as Delhi's Deputy Chief Minister and given up the 18 portfolios he earlier held.

Sisodia faces allegations of corruption in the liquor policy that was scrapped after Delhi Lt Governor VK Saxena recommended a CBI probe.

The Arvind Kejriwal government was accused of bending rules and providing undue benefits to liquor vend licensees.

The Delhi government has rubbished the allegations, saying that the BJP was misusing investigating agencies for political motives. Mr Kejriwal has said the now-scrapped liquor policy was the "most transparent policy in the country".

The CBI had arrested Sisodia last week in connection with alleged corruption in the formulation and implementation of the now-scrapped liquor policy for 2021-22.