A Rouse Avenue court on Saturday sent AAP convener and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to 14 days judicial custody in a corruption case related to the alleged excise scam.

He was produced before Special Judge Sunena Sharma of the Rouse Avenue court by the CBI after the end of his three-day custodial interrogation, following which the agency sought 14-day judicial custody while claiming that he was an influential politician who could tamper with evidence and influence witnesses if he did not remain in custody.  The CBI did not seek an extension of its custody of Kejriwal and asked that he be sent to judicial custody.

Allowing the plea, Special Judge Sunena Sharma said that Kejriwal be produced in the court on July 12.  Following a request by Kejriwal, the court has also permitted him to appear through video conferencing in the next hearing instead of having the authorities produce him physically.

"Considering the fact that the conspiracy alleged against the accused (Kejriwal) involves a large number of persons who were involved in the formulation and implementation of excise policy and also the persons who acted as facilitators in the use of ill-gotten money, I find that there exist sufficient grounds for remanding the accused to judicial custody'," Special Judge Sunena Sharma said.

"...The investigation is still in progress and may require custodial interrogation of the accused to confront him with more material likely to be collected during the course of the investigation.

Accordingly, accused Arvind Kejriwal is remanded to judicial custody till July 12," the judge added. 

Noting the evidence before it, the court said that the investigation revealed that accused Vijay Nair, a close associate of Kejriwal, was the media-in-charge of the Aam Admi Party and he had contacted various liquor manufacturers and traders for demanding undue gratification for incorporation of provisions favourable to them in the excise policy for 2021-22.

It also noted that Kejriwal's name surfaced as one of the "main conspirators of the criminal conspiracy" for various offences under provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act and Indian Penal Code.  "Four chargesheets in the case have already been filed against 17 accused persons including the persons of South group," the court noted.

It said that the investigating officer (IO) had pointed out in the case diary that Kejriwal was not cooperative during his custodial interrogation, nor was he truthful in disclosing facts on many material aspects. 

"The IO has pointed out certain incriminatory material collected during the investigation for showing that the ill-gotten money was used during the Goa assembly election for making payments towards the expenses of air tickets and hotel booking during the visits of the accused to Goa from June 2021 to February 2022," the court said.  It said that the IO also showed some incriminatory material showing Kejriwal's chats with certain persons "involved in the transfer of ill-gotten money to Goa through hawala".

In its remand application, the CBI said during the custodial interrogation, Kejriwal did not cooperate with the investigation and deliberately gave evasive replies contrary to the evidence on record. "On being confronted with the evidence, he did not give a proper and truthful explanation regarding the enhancement of the profit margin for wholesalers from 5% to 12% under the new excise policy of Delhi 2021-22, without any study or justification," it said.

"He also could not explain as to why during the peak of second wave of Covid, the cabinet approval for revised excise policy was obtained through circulation in a hurried manner within one day, when the accused persons of the South Group were camping in Delhi and holding meetings with his close associate Vijay Nair," it added.

The application said Kejriwal evaded the questions regarding the meetings of his associate Vijay Nair with various stakeholders of the liquor business in Delhi and he was unable to give proper explanation about his meeting with Magunta Sreenivasulu Reddy, accused Arjun Pandey and accused Mootha Gautham.