Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal moved the Delhi High Court on Monday, challenging his arrest in the excise policy case by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief also challenged a Delhi court's June 26 order that sent him to three-day judicial custody.
On Saturday, after the three-day remand of Kejriwal ended, a Delhi court remanded him in judicial custody till July 12, saying he was named as one of the “main conspirators” in the excise policy case. has come out.
The agency had sought a 14-day judicial custody, claiming that Arvind Kejriwal had not cooperated with the probe and responded evasively. The agency said that Kejriwal may try to influence the witnesses.
Arvind Kejriwal, who was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on March 21 in a money laundering probe linked to the excise policy case, was arrested by the CBI on June 26.
“Considering the fact that the alleged conspiracy against the accused (Kejriwal) involves a large number of persons who were involved in the formulation and implementation of the excise policy and those who facilitated the use of ill-gotten gains. “There are sufficient grounds to send the accused to judicial custody,” said Special Judge Sunina Sharma.
The judge said the agency needed custodial interrogation of Kejriwal to “collect more material from him during investigation”.
The court added that the Investigating Officer (IO) had pointed out in the case diary that Kejriwal was not cooperating during his custodial interrogation and was not truthful in revealing the facts.
“The IO has identified some incriminating material collected during the course of investigation which shows that during the Goa assembly elections, the expenses of air tickets and hotel bookings were paid by the accused during his visits to Goa from June. The ill-gotten gains were used from 2021 to February 2022,” the court said.
Arvind Kejriwal and some other AAP leaders are accused of acquiescence. ₹100 crore as kickbacks from a group of businessmen and politicians in return for making a favorable liquor policy. The policy was scrapped soon after Delhi's lieutenant governor ordered an inquiry into alleged irregularities in the granting of liquor licences.
According to the CBI and ED, a significant portion of the alleged kickbacks was diverted through hawala channels to the party's election campaign in Goa.
With input from PTI