- Monday, September 16, 2024
The Delhi chief minister has filed two separate petitions challenging the denial of bail and against his arrest by the CBI
By: Shajil Kumar
THE SUPREME COURT on Thursday reserved its order on Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal’s separate pleas seeking bail and challenging his arrest by the CBI in the alleged excise policy scam.
A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan heard arguments put forward by Additional Solicitor General S V Raju, representing the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), and senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, appearing for Kejriwal.
“Thank you for the assistance. Judgment reserved,” the bench said after the lawyers concluded their arguments.
Kejriwal has filed two separate petitions challenging the denial of bail and against his arrest by the CBI in the corruption case filed by the central agency.
The AAP chief was arrested by the CBI on June 26.
The Delhi High Court had on August 5 upheld the arrest of the chief minister as legal, and said there was no malice in the acts done by the CBI which was able to demonstrate how the AAP supremo could influence witnesses who could muster the courage to depose only after his arrest.
The excise policy was scrapped in 2022 after the Delhi lieutenant governor ordered a CBI probe into alleged irregularities and corruption involving its formulation and execution.
According to the CBI and the ED, irregularities were committed while modifying the excise policy and undue favours extended to licence holders.
Insurance arrest
Earlier in the day, Kejriwal told the top court that the CBI did not arrest him for nearly two years in the alleged excise policy scam and an “insurance arrest” was made on June 26 after he got bail in the “harsher” money laundering case filed by the ED.
Singhvi told the bench that no notice was served to Kejriwal by the CBI before his arrest and an ex-parte arrest order was passed by the trial court.
Seeking bail for the beleaguered Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader, Singhvi submitted that Kejriwal is a constitutional functionary and not a flight risk.
Singhvi said Kejriwal was also not named in the CBI FIR.
Questioning the maintainability of Kejriwal’s pleas seeking bail, the CBI told the Supreme Court that he should have first approached the trial court.
Excise policy
The excise policy was scrapped in 2022 after the Delhi lieutenant governor ordered a CBI investigation into alleged irregularities and corruption involving its formulation and execution.
According to the CBI and the ED, irregularities were committed while modifying the excise policy and undue favours extended to licence holders.
Several AAP leaders including Manish Sisodia, Sanjay Singh and the party’s former communication in-charge Vijay Nair were arrested. They all recently got bail after spending months behind bars. (PTI)
