The Supreme Court of India Tuesday said that if Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal is released on interim bail, he won't be allowed to perform official duties as it “may have a cascading effect”. A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta made the remarks while hearing the jailed Chief Minister's petition challenging his March 21 arrest by the Enforcement Directorate linked to the Delhi liquor policy case.
The Supreme Court is hearing Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Convener Arvind Kejriwal's bail petition on Tuesday after the court expressed that it is open to consider interim bail for AAP supremo owing to the polls. The top court urged the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to come prepared for the hearing noting that “We may grant or we may not grant. But we must be open to you as neither side should be taken by surprise.”
Kejriwal has been in judicial custody in Tihar Jail since his arrest on March 21. The Supreme Court issued a notice to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on April 15 concerning Kejriwal's plea and sought their response. On April 9, the high court upheld his arrest, citing his repeated refusal to join the investigation and attend summonses.
The matter pertains to alleged corruption and money laundering in the formulation and execution of the Delhi government's now-scrapped liquor excise policy for 2021-22.
In another development, Delhi Lieutenant Governor V. K. Saxena recommended a National Investigation Agency (NIA) probe against Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday. The recommendation is based on a complaint made by the World Hindu Federation India (WHFI) which alleged that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) received political funding from the banned organisation ‘Sikhs for Justice'.
This comes a day before Mr. Kejriwal's bail hearing. He was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on March 21 in connection with a money laundering case in the Delhi excise policy case and has been in judicial custody in Tihar jail since then.
