Excise policy scam: 'Insurance arrest' made after bail in ED case, Kejriwal to SC
Kejriwal had challenged the Delhi High Court's decision that upheld his arrest in the corruption case related to the alleged scam
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal told the Supreme Court on Thursday 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.
Senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, appearing for the chief minister, told a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan that no notice was served to Kejriwal by the CBI before arrest and an ex-parte arrest order passed by the trial court.
Seeking bail for the jailed Delhi CM, Singhvi submitted that Kejriwal is a constitutional functionary and was not a flight risk.
Singhvi said Kejriwal was not named in the CBI FIR and moreover, he is not a “flight risk”.
The senior lawyer said the top court, while granting interim bail in the money laundering case, had said the chief minister was not a threat to society.
“What started in August, 2023 has led to arrest in March this year in the money laundering case,” he said, adding the top court and a trial court have already granted him bail.
Earlier, a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan, while considering the bail plea on August 14, had denied him interim bail. The hearing was deferred until September 5, allowing the CBI to file its counter affidavit.
Kejriwal had challenged the Delhi High Court's decision that upheld his arrest in the corruption case related to the alleged scam.
Meanwhile, on Tuesday, a Delhi court issued summons to Kejriwal and other accused in the case after considering the CBI's “fourth supplementary chargesheet” related to the excise policy case. The court also extended Arvind Kejriwal's judicial custody until September 11. Special judge Kaveri Baweja ordered that the accused be presented before the court on September 11.
The CBI filed its fourth supplementary chargesheet on July 30, naming Kejriwal, Satyendar Jain, Amit Arora, Vinod Chauhan, Ashish Mathur, and P Sarath Reddy as accused in the case. According to the CBI, Kejriwal is described as “one of the main conspirators” and was allegedly in contact with the South group, which included K Kavitha, Raghav Magunta, Arun Pillai, Butchibabu Gorantla, P Sarath Reddy, Abhishek Boinpally, and Benoy Babu.
The chargesheet further claims that the kickback funds were used “as per Kejriwal's instructions” since the money was routed into the Aam Aadmi Party's (AAP) funds. Additionally, it was alleged that Kejriwal promised ₹90 lakh to each candidate in 40 constituencies in Goa.
The Delhi chief minister was first arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on March 21, 2024, in a money laundering case and later by the CBI in a corruption case on June 26. He has already received bail from the top court in the ED case linked to the alleged liquor policy scam.
(With agency inputs)