India

No exception made in granting interim bail to Kejriwal, says SC

Arvind Kejriwal.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court of India clarified on Thursday that it did not make any special exception for Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal when granting him interim bail for campaigning during the Lok Sabha elections, stating that a critical analysis of the judgment is welcome.

A bench comprising Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta declined to delve into the arguments presented by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Kejriwal’s lawyer regarding statements made in relation to the interim bail given to the Aam Aadmi Party leader.

“We have not made any exception for anybody; we issued our order based on what we deemed justified,” the bench remarked, emphasizing that scrutiny of the judgment is encouraged.

During the hearing, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta representing the ED raised objections about Kejriwal’s statements at election rallies suggesting that he would not return to prison if people voted for his party.

Responding to this, the bench noted, “It is his assumption; we cannot comment on that.”

Advocate Abhishek Singhvi, representing Kejriwal, pointed out a statement made by a senior Union minister during the proceedings, though the minister was not named in court.

The Supreme Court was considering Kejriwal’s main petition challenging his potential arrest. On May 10, the court granted interim bail to Kejriwal in connection with a money laundering case linked to an alleged Delhi excise policy scam. He was instructed to surrender by June 2, having been arrested on March 21.

Click to comment
To Top