Excise policy case: Supreme Court to consider granting interim bail to Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday

Tribune News Service

Satya Prakash

New Delhi, May 6

The Supreme Court will on Tuesday consider granting interim bail to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in a money-laundering case linked to the excise policy scam in view of the ongoing Lok Sabha polls.

Noting the hearing on Kejriwal's petition challenging his arrest in a money-laundering case linked to the excise policy ‘scam’ was likely to take time, a Bench led by Justice Sanjiv Khanna had on May 3 asked Additional Solicitor General SV Raju -- who represented the Enforcement Directorate – to take instructions from the probe agency on the issue of interim bail to the AAP chief.

The top court had asked the ASG to be considerate and suggest the conditions the ED would like to impose on Kejriwal in case he was granted interim bail. It had also asked the probe agency to spell out if the Delhi Chief Minister can be allowed to sign files from jail.

The Bench, however, had said, “We are not commenting on it either way. We may or may not grant (interim bail)…Don’t read anything into it,” the Bench said, even as Raju had made it clear he would oppose interim bail to Kejriwal.

Drawing the court’s attention to statements being made by AAP MP Sanjay Singh after the top court ordered his release on bail, the ASG had said, "Look at the kind of statements he is making.”

Currently lodged in Tihar Jail in the national capital under judicial custody after his arrest on March 21, Kejriwal has challenged the Delhi High Court’s April 9 verdict upholding his arrest in a money-laundering case linked to the Delhi excise policy ‘scam’.

Earlier, the top court had on April 2 granted bail to senior AAP leader Sanjay Singh – who was arrested by the ED on October 4, 2023 -- in connection with a money-laundering case related to the Delhi excise policy scam after the ED said it had no objection to his release on bail. However, it had clarified that the concession given to Singh will not be treated as a precedent.

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#Arvind Kejriwal #Lok Sabha #Supreme Court