On Thursday, a Delhi Court granted bail to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in the money laundering case linked to the alleged liquor policy scam.
Vacation Judge Nyay Bindu of Rouse Avenue Courts issued the order after having reserved it earlier today.
ED’s special counsel Zoheb Hossain requested a stay of the order until the probe agency exhausted its legal remedies. However, the court denied the request for a stay.
Kejriwal was taken into custody by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on March 21. In May, the Supreme Court granted him interim bail until June 1 in light of the general elections. He surrendered on June 2.
ASG SV Raju, representing the Enforcement Directorate (ED), stated that co-accused Chanpreet Singh received substantial cash amounts from entrepreneurs and settled hotel bills for Arvind Kejriwal’s stay.
He emphasized that the ED’s investigation is based on concrete evidence and not conducted arbitrarily.
ASG stated, “Kejriwal insists that my phone is sacrosanct. Mai password nahi dunga. (I will not give my password). We had to use Vinod Chauhan’s phone. He remains silent. Often, the accused refuses… A negative inference must be drawn from Kejriwal’s refusal to provide his password. This alone justifies denying bail under regular bail laws, setting aside Section 45 PMLA for now.”
ASG also stated that co-accused Vijay Nair, who had no government affiliation and no involvement in framing the excise policy, was utilized as a middleman by Kejriwal. It is unquestionably established that Nair had a close relationship with the Chief Minister.
On April 10, the Delhi High Court rejected Kejriwal’s petition contesting his arrest, noting that the ED had presented sufficient evidence, including statements from approvers and the AAP’s own candidate, indicating that Kejriwal received funds for the Goa elections.
