Congress Demands Sedition Charges Against AAP In Political Snooping Case, LG Forwards Request

Former MP Sandeep Dikshit and fellow Congress leaders Mangat Ram Singhal and Kiran Walia had written to Delhi Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena, requesting an investigation into charges of snooping and spying by the Delhi government's Feedback Unit.

According to news reports, their request has been forwarded to the Delhi chief secretary for further action by the Delhi LG.

On 1 March, Dikshit and the former ministers wrote to Saxena stating that the sanction given to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to prosecute Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Manish Sisodia in the Feedback Unit case under the Prevention of Corruption Act was not relevant as it was not just a matter of corruption but involved alleged spying on people and institutions, including those at the Centre.

The letter suggested that the Feedback Unit's actions might be considered seditious and anti-national, and the CBI and the National Investigation Agency (NIA) should probe under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, or UAPA.

The Delhi government officials, including the chief minister and ministers, must be prosecuted if found guilty of wrongdoing, according to the letter.

Last month, Saxena gave the nod to the CBI to file a case in the matter.

The Union Ministry of Home Affairs later granted sanction to the CBI to prosecute Sisodia under Section 17 of the Prevention of Corruption Act in a case related to the alleged collection of "political intelligence" through a Delhi government department.

The Feedback Unit was proposed by the AAP dispensation in 2015 to gather information and feedback regarding the working of various departments and autonomous bodies, institutions, and entities under the jurisdiction of the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi, as well as for "trap cases", according to the CBI's preliminary inquiry report.

The unit started functioning in 2016 with a provision of Rs 1 crore for secret service expenditure.

The AAP responded to the move, accusing the Bharatiya Janata Party and the Congress of working together to target the party.

(With inputs from PTI)