The Supreme Court on Wednesday refused to grant interim bail to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in a corruption case filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the alleged excise policy scam and sought a response from the probe agency on his plea challenging his arrest.
The court scheduled the matter for hearing on August 23, stating "no interim bail for now".
This is a setback to Kejriwal as he won’t be able to hoist the national flag on the occasion of Independence Day event at Chhatrasaal stadium.
Amid ongoing controversy over the Independence Day flag hoisting ceremony, Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena snubbed Kejriwal’s choice and nominated Delhi Home Minister Kailash Gahlot to hoist the national flag in the absence of Delhi CM.
This is the first time in the past eight year that Kejriwal will not hoist the national flag as he is in Tihar jail. The insiders of the AAP said that top leadership is unhappy with Gahlot as he has shared the stage with Lieutenant Governor.
Over the past few days, Gahlot has shared the stage with Saxena on several occasions. The leaders in AAP see Saxena’s move as an attempt to create a rift.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief moved the Supreme Court after the Delhi High Court rejected his challenge to the CBI arrest.
He has already got bail from the top court in a case by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) linked to the alleged liquor policy scam. Kejriwal’s bail came before the top court days after senior AAP leader and former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia was granted bail in the same case by the Supreme Court after spending 17 months in jail.
As the hearing commenced before a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan, senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, appearing for Kejriwal, submitted that he had got interim bail on three occasions in the money laundering case, also linked to the alleged scam, despite the stringent conditions laid down for grant of bail in cases under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). Singhvi cited the top court's interim bail orders passed on May 10 and July 12, as well as the regular bail granted by the trial court on June 20.
Responding to the development, the AAP said in a statement that the application for interim bail hasn't been rejected by the SC. It has only issued notice for 23rd August in today's hearing. "Everyone knows that this is a fake case with no recovery or evidence against any AAP leaders. We are confident that after the matter is heard by the SC, CM Arvind Kejriwal will get bail," the AAP said
He informed the bench that the June 20 order of the trial court was stayed by the Delhi High Court on an "oral mention".
Singhvi argued when Kejriwal could secure bail despite the stringent conditions laid down under the PMLA, he cannot be denied regular bail in the CBI case since the Prevention of Corruption Act (PCA) does not have similar rigorous provisions like the anti-money laundering law.
"I hate to say so but I have said this everywhere. This particular arrest is what might be called insurance arrest. You are having me interrogated on April 23 for nine hours, you do not have any further action till March 24 when the ED arrests me. I get three release orders and just on the cusp of the order, I am arrested in June," Singhvi said.
Referring to Kejriwal's health concerns, Singhvi requested for interim bail. He said an application seeking the relief has also ready been filed. Justice Kant responded, “We are not granting any interim bail. We are issuing a notice"
The senior lawyer then requested for a "shortest date" and the bench posted the matter for hearing on August 23.
The Delhi High Court had on August 5 upheld the arrest of the chief minister as legal, and said there was no malice in the acts done by the CBI which was able to demonstrate how the AAP supremo could influence witnesses who could muster the courage to depose only after his arrest.
The high court had asked him to move the trial court for regular bail in the CBI case.
