The Supreme Court on Tuesday deferred its order on Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s interim bail plea in a money laundering case stemming from the alleged Delhi excise policy scam. The court is likely to hear the case on Thursday or next week.
Earlier in the day, a Bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta underscored that interim relief to Kejriwal will only be granted subject to the condition that he will not discharge any official duties as it may have a “cascading effect”. The judges asserted that the situation was “extraordinary” as Lok Sabha elections are held once every five years.
“While granting interim bail, we examine whether there will be any misuse or if the person is a hardened criminal. That is not the case here”, Justice Khanna said during the proceedings.
Opposing such a relief, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) said it would send a “wrong message” to the common man and accordingly encouraged the Court to not carve out any exceptions solely for politicians. The agency also flagged that the Delhi CM had evaded its summons in the Delhi excise policy case on nine prior occasions.
A day before the bail hearing, Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena recommended a National Investigation Agency (NIA) probe against the AAP supremo. The recommendation is based on a complaint made by the World Hindu Federation India (WHFI) which alleged that the political party received political funding from the banned organisation ‘Sikhs for Justice’.
In a massive blow to the CM, the Delhi HC on April 9 said there was nothing illegal about his arrest by the ED and recorded a prima facie finding that there was adequate material, including statements of approvers, involvement of middlemen and references that cash was handed over for expenditure in the 2022 Goa elections.
Kejriwal was arrested on March 21, barely days after the Model Code of Conduct for the general election was declared on March 16. He is currently lodged in the Tihar jail on his sixth stretch of remand till May 20. Delhi’s Rouse Avenue court on Tuesday extended till May 20 the judicial custody of Arvind Kejriwal.
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