• Source:JND
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Days after walking out of Tihar jail, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh said on Saturday he stayed "resolute and brave" during his six-month stay in the jail and asked his family members not to "shed a tear" during their virtual interactions. The Rajya Sabha member was granted bail in the Delhi excise policy-linked money laundering case by the Supreme Court on Tuesday.

Speaking to PTI, Singh recalled his days inside Toar, which currently houses Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and senior AAP leaders Manish Sisodia and Satyendar Jain.

"The initial 11 days were quite difficult. I was inside a small cell and was not allowed to step outside. I was under police security. Subsequently, I spoke to the jail administration and demanded that I be given rights as a normal prisoner," he told PTI.

Thereafter, he said that he was allowed to move out at fixed times under police security.

"They decided to allow me to go to music room, badminton court at fixed times. Even the issues related to food were also addressed," he said.

Singh said that he used the jail time to read books since he did not have a mobile phone.

"I read in those six months -- the writings of Nelson Mandela, Mahatma Gandhi, Dr (Ram Manohar) Lohia, Bhagat Singh. Maine 6 mahine mein utna padha jitna main 6 saal mein nahi padh paaya (In these six months I read more than what I had done in six years)," he said.

Singh, speaking about his six months in Tihar, said that his "morale is quite strong" and it will strengthen his fight ahead.

"Either you sit at home or fight. We will fight," he said.

While Singh was in jail, his wife, Anita, was taking care of everything. Talking about how his family dealt with his absence, he said he spent the time bravely and even asked his family to stay strong.

"It is a tough situation for any family if they battle such circumstances. But the question is how can we stand strongly? I was so cautious. I knew that the video conferencing that takes place between inmates and their families is recorded," he said.

Sanjay said that he would try to regale his family with interesting anecdotes from the jail or some funny incident.

"I would tell them stories that make them laugh. The first day they asked me how are you, how is your health. I told them to always ask me 'jail waale kaise hain'. Nobody was allowed to cry. I told them this is being recorded. The people sitting at the top would be happy seeing them in tears or seeing Sanjay Singh dejected," he said.

"I was resolute and brave throughout my jail days," he said.

For a major part of his stay, he was housed in cell number 28 in jail number two but was later transferred to jail number five.

"This is weird. I was transferred from jail number two to jail number five. Manish Sisodia is in a separate jail and Satyendar Jain is in a separate jail. I don't know why they consider us such big accused that we were all kept in separate jails. I was under CCTV surveillance 24x7," he said.

Speaking about Arvind Kejriwal, he said that it has given  strength to party workers in terms of working and reaching out to people.

"Today Kejriwal is not here but workers are trying to fill that gap. The people of Delhi will give a befitting reply (in elections)," he said.

(With input from agencies)