The Delhi High Court on Wednesday heard Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s bail plea related to the Excise policy case and reserved the order in the matter. The court also reserved its order on the plea challenging the chief minister’s arrest.
During the hearing, the AAP Supremo’s counsel argued that he “is a Chief Minister and not a terrorist” who cannot be granted bail.
The previous hearing occurred on July 2, during which Justice Neena Bansal Krishna directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to respond within seven days.
Arvind Kejriwal Is Not A Terrorist: Lawyer
Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, who appeared for Kejriwal during his bail hearing on Wednesday said he was not a terrorist who cannot be granted bail on the grounds of tampering with evidence or fleeing the country.
“The CBI FIR was filed in August 2022 and Kejriwal wasn’t named in that. In April 2023, he was summoned under Sec 160 CrPC as a witness,” Singhvi said in court.
“The Supreme Court doesn’t think Kejriwal can tamper with evidence, or he’ll fly to England and the SC tests my bonafide,” he argued.
‘I Was Not Heard’: Kejriwal on June 26 Arrest
Senior Advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, appearing for Arvind Kejriwal said, “The trial court gave me (Arvind Kejriwal) regular bail under PMLA on June 20 and after four days CBI took the order to question me in judicial custody and arrested me on June 26. I never got a copy of the application. No notice was given, and the order was passed. I was not heard.”
“In Kejriwal’s case, there is a very interesting sentence in Justice Khanna’s order, that interrogation by itself cannot be a ground for arrest. It is a remarkable case. It’s not that you put on a blindfold and allow the arrest,” Singhvi said.
CBI Says ‘Don’t Have Luxury’ To Pick Terms
CBI in its submission said that the agency should be able to perform independently and it must be left to them to investigate and call people for questioning.
Countering, Kejriwal’s ‘Insurance Arrest’ argument, the Central probe agency said that the term has no legal sanctity, and the agency has no luxury to use such terms.
His Role is Not So ‘AAM’: CBI on Kejriwal’s Bail Plea
On Kejriwal’s legal team’s claim that there was no substantial evidence or reason behind his name in the chargesheet, CBI on Wednesday said that the Delhi Chief Minister’s role will be discussed in detail with the court.
The agency also said that there was nothing ‘AAM’ about his role in the scam case. CBI also said that it did not arrest him because the Supreme Court granted him bail.
Kejriwal filed his plea in the High Court on July 1, challenging the Delhi Rouse Avenue Court’s June 26 decision that sent him to CBI custody for three days. He remains in judicial custody until July 25.
The CBI is investigating allegations of corruption against Kejriwal linked to the liquor policy. He was arrested from Tihar Jail on June 26, where he was already detained in a money laundering case related to the same case.
Before this, he was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on March 21 and remanded to custody by the Rouse Avenue Court.
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