SC grants bail to Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal in liquor policy 'scam' case

Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal was granted bail by the Supreme Court on Friday in the Delhi liquor policy scam linked to money laundering and corruption probes. Earlier, Manish Sisodia was also granted bail

In a major victory for the Aam Aadmi Party, its leader and Delhi Chief Minister, Arvind Kejriwal, was granted bail by the Supreme Court on Friday in connection with the ongoing investigation into the alleged Delhi liquor policy scam.

The court had reserved its verdict on two petitions filed by Kejriwal on September 5. Besides the bail plea, the Aam Aadmi Party chief had also challenged the Delhi High Court order upholding his arrest by the Central Bureau of Investigation as "legal."

Kejriwal was granted bail upon posting a Rs 10 lakh bond and two sureties of the same amount. The court has barred him from visiting his office or the Delhi Secretariat and or signing official files unless required for obtaining the Lieutenant Governor's sanction.

 

Arrest of Kejriwal by CBI was only to frustrate the bail granted in ED case : Supreme Court pic.twitter.com/SpqWtgxSfm

— AAP (@AamAadmiParty) September 13, 2024

The court also questioned the timing of Kejriwal's arrest by the CBI and said the agency's aim was to frustrate grant of bail to him in the ED case. Kejriwal was arrested on March 21 by the Enforcement Directorate, which is investigating the case for money laundering charges. The Central Bureau of Investigation is also conducting a parallel probe into the alleged corruption by public servants. The top court had granted Kejriwal interim bail on July 12 in the Enforcement Directorate probe, but he remained lodged in Delhi’s Tihar Jail due to his Central Bureau of Investigation custody.

K Kavitha, Manish Sisodia get bail

Last month, Bharat Rashtra Samithi leader K Kavitha was granted bail in the same case by the Supreme Court. On August 9, senior Aam Aadmi Party leader Manish Sisodia was also granted bail after serving a jail term of 1.5 years. During Sisodia’s bail hearing, the top court used very strong words over the entire probe procedure, noting that refusal to grant bail cannot be a punishment mechanism. “Bail is the rule, jail is the exception,” the top court had noted.

Kejriwal had earlier been granted interim bail of 22 days by the apex court on May 10 in view of the Lok Sabha elections in June.

Aam Aadmi Party to focus on Haryana

Following the top court’s latest verdict, the Aam Aadmi Party hailed it as the “victory of truth.” Denying all allegations, the Aam Aadmi Party has said that the case has been fabricated by the “dictatorial” Narendra Modi government to "harass" opposition leaders by "misusing" central probe agencies. With Kejriwal's bail, the Aam Aadmi Party is now expected to focus fully on the upcoming Haryana elections.

What is the excise policy case about?

In its charge sheet, the Central Bureau of Investigation alleged that the Aam Aadmi Party benefited from the illicit funds generated through the scam and blamed Kejriwal for it. It had earlier called the Aam Aadmi Party leader the “kingpin” in the case.

The agency alleged that the Aam Aadmi Party government sought a Rs 100 crore bribe from certain businessmen, referred to as the ‘south group’, in return for tweaking the excise policy framework in their favour. The probe agency claimed that this bribe was used by the Aam Aadmi Party during the Goa Assembly election campaign in 2022. K Kavitha is said to be linked to this ‘south group’.

The investigation into the case was initiated two months after Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena took office in May 2022. Following the allegations of misconduct, the policy was rolled back in July 2022.