A bench of two judges, Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Dipankar Datta of the Supreme Court is scheduled to hear the petition of Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal to quash his arrest in the money laundering case, on April 15.
On April 1, the Rouse Avenue Court had ordered, 14 days of judicial remand to Mr. Arvind Kejriwal; April 15 also marks his last day in the remand.
On April 13, Sanjay Singh a member of the Rajya Sabha from the Aam Aadmi Party alleged that Kejriwal is being subjected to torture inside the Tihar Jail.
Kejriwal was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on March 21, after he skipped the ED’s summon for the ninth time in the Delhi Liquor Policy-related money laundering case. On the same day, the Delhi High Court refused to grant protection from arrest to Kejriwal.
On March 23, Kejriwal, once again moved the Delhi High Court challenging his arrest and the trial court’s order to remand him in ED’s custody. But on April 9, the high court rejected his petition against his arrest. Soon after, his lawyers filed a petition in the Supreme Court on April 10 to quash the arrest.
The petition argues that Kejriwal’s arrest was made solely based on subsequent, contradictory highly belated statements of the co-accused who have now turned approvers. The petition also accuses ED of allowing its process to be misused by vested interests as an instrument of oppression.
The SC is hearing this case in an urgent situation, in which the alleged misuse of investigating agencies during the election season raises concern. However, the ED alleges Kejriwal asked for kickbacks from the liquor dealers in return for favors. ED also alleges that he along with other AAP leaders is the key conspirator in the now-scrapped liquor policy of Delhi.
