Delhi High Court denies interim protection to CM Arvind Kejriwal in liquor policy case

In a recent development the Delhi High Court has declined to grant interim protection to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal from coercive action in connection with the money laundering case related to the alleged liquor policy. The court comprising a division bench of Justice Suresh Kumar Kait and Justice Manoj Jain made this decision during the hearing on Thursday.

According to reports Senior Advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi appeared for Arvind Kejriwal while ASG SV Raju along with special counsel Zoheb Hossain represented the Enforcement Directorate (ED) during the proceedings.

Singhvi contended that the ED's actions were biased especially considering the upcoming elections, and questioned the necessity for Kejriwal's physical presence based on the summons issued. He argued against granting interim relief, emphasizing that the ED must justify the need for an arrest rather than exercising its power arbitrarily.

On the other hand, Raju opposed the grant of interim relief, asserting that the law applies equally to everyone, regardless of their position. He clarified that Kejriwal was summoned in his personal capacity and not as the Chief Minister or the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Chief.

During the hearing, Raju maintained that Kejriwal's application for interim relief was not maintainable as the main petition's maintainability itself was under question. He dismissed Kejriwal's claim of harassment, stating that neither the AAP nor Kejriwal had been named as accused parties.

Singhvi, in response, argued that Kejriwal's involvement could only be in his capacity as the convenor of the AAP, and accused the ED of attempting to disrupt a level playing field in the electoral process.

This legal tussle comes amidst ED's criminal complaints against Kejriwal for alleged non-compliance with summons. Kejriwal, however, has deemed the summons illegal and has proposed to be questioned via video conferencing after March 12.

Notably, Aam Aadmi Party leaders Manish Sisodia and Sanjay Singh have already been arrested in connection with the same case and are presently in judicial custody.
The ED has alleged that the liquor policy was part of a conspiracy to benefit certain private companies and it has implicated Kejriwal and others in coordinating this scheme.