New Delhi, September 13 (IANS) The Supreme Court will pronounce its verdict today (Friday) on the bail plea of Delhi Chief Minister CM Kejriwal. The verdict will be given on Kejriwal’s petition challenging the CBI’s arrest and bail in the corruption case related to the alleged liquor policy scam.
Let us tell you that apart from seeking bail, CM Kejriwal has also filed a separate petition challenging his arrest and subsequent remand by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the liquor scam.
According to the cause list published on the Supreme Court website, a two-judge bench headed by Justice Surya Kant will pronounce its verdict at 10.30 am. The other judge Justice Ujjwal Bhuiyan may also give his separate opinion on CM Kejriwal’s petitions.
Last week, a division bench of Justices Kant and Bhuiyan had reserved its verdict after hearing arguments of senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, appearing for the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) supremo, and Additional Solicitor General (ASG) SV Raju, appearing for the CBI.
Singhvi said that Delhi Chief Minister Kejriwal, who is in office, has met the triple test for granting bail. He said, “He is not a flight risk, he will come to answer the questions of the investigating agency and cannot tamper with lakhs of pages of documents and digital evidence after two years.”
On the other hand, the central agency feared that CM Kejriwal’s release would turn many witnesses hostile and therefore urged the Supreme Court not to release him on bail. ASG Raju said that many AAP candidates in the Goa assembly elections came forward to give their statements before the central agency only after CM Kejriwal’s arrest.
“If you release Kejriwal on bail, they (witnesses) will turn hostile,” he argued. He argued that CM Kejriwal’s bail plea should be sent back to the trial court and he should not have filed a bail plea in the Delhi High Court in the first place. The ASG said that arrest is a part of investigation and normally, an investigating officer does not need any permission from the court to make an arrest. “But in the present case, the court had given an order giving power (to arrest),” he said. He said that when an arrest is made as per the court’s order, an accused cannot plead violation of fundamental rights.
Recently, the apex court had allowed the bail pleas of senior AAP leader and former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, BRS leader K Kavitha and AAP’s former communication in-charge Vijay Nair in the excise policy case.
In his special leave petition filed in the Supreme Court, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) convener has challenged his arrest and subsequent remand orders, and also pressed for bail in a corruption case.
On the other hand, while seeking dismissal of CM Kejriwal’s plea, CBI said that the AAP supremo was only trying to politically sensationalise the matter while repeated orders passed by various courts prima facie satisfy the commission of offences for which cognizance has already been taken.
The agency said that though Chief Minister Kejriwal “does not hold any ministerial position in the Delhi government, all decisions of the government and the party are taken with his consent and direction.” It added that these include decisions taken not only in Delhi but across the country where the AAP has a presence.
On July 12, the Supreme Court had ordered the release of CM Kejriwal on interim bail in the money laundering case registered by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). However, he has not been able to come out of jail since he was arrested by the CBI.
Meanwhile, a Delhi court on Wednesday extended the judicial custody of CM Kejriwal till September 25. He was produced before the court via video conferencing from Tihar jail on the expiry of the earlier judicial custody period.
–IANS
RK/KR
