The Supreme Court on Friday granted interim bail till June 1 to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a money laundering case related to the now-scrapped Delhi Excise Policy 2020-21.
The order was passed by the Bench of Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Dipankar Datta. The court ordered Arvind Kejriwal not to visit the office of the Chief Minister. It further directed the Chief Minister not to sign any official files. It also barred CM Arvind Kejriwal from commenting about the case and interacting with the witness.
Earlier on May 9, the legal team of Delhi Chief Minister and AAP National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday raised strong objection to the affidavit filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) opposing his interim bail in the Supreme Court.
A formal complaint was lodged with the Supreme Court’s Registry denouncing the ED’s affidavit as a blatant disregard of legal procedures, especially considering that the matter was already slated for a final decision in the Apex Court tomorrow and the affidavit was submitted without taking the SC’s approval.
Questioning the ED’s objection to the interim bail of CM Arvind Kejriwal, the AAP said that it was well known that even after two years of investigation by ED in the alleged liquor scam, not a single rupee or piece of evidence has been recovered incriminating anybody in Aam Aadmi Party.
Further, the grounds of arrest were based on statements made by other implicated persons viz. Magunta Sreenivasulu Reddy, Sarath Reddy, Satya Vijay Naik, and a close aide of an ex-BJP CM.
It said ED has relied solely on the statements of these accused turned witnesses with direct links to and benefitting from the BJP.
For instance, Magunta Sreenivasulu Reddy, who received an NDA Lok Sabha ticket, gave a statement to facilitate the bail of his son, Raghav Reddy.
Another approver, P. Sarath Reddy, sent Rs 60 crore to the BJP’s account through electoral bonds to secure his own bail, it added.
The AAP alleged that these statements indicated a pattern: These persons were arrested, they made multiple statements which did not implicate Kejriwal, it added.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested Kejriwal on allegations of being actively involved in the now-scrapped excise policy of 2021-22, which was aimed to benefit certain liquor sellers.
As per the allegations cast by the federal agency, the inducement received by the scam were used as a funding the election campaigns in Goa by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).
The Delhi CM is not the sole accused in the case, as the former Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, AAP Member of Parliament Sanjay Singh and Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader K Kavitha were all partners in the game.
Sanjay Singh was granted bail, however Sisodia and Kavitha remain in jail.