Arvind Kejriwal: SC grants bail to Delhi CM in excise policy case

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has been granted bail by the Supreme Court after his June arrest by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the alleged liquor excise policy case.

The Aam Aadmi Party leader, who had spent nearly six months in prison without a trial, can now be released after securing bail in a related case filed earlier by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).

A two-judge bench, consisting of Justices Ujjal Bhuyan and Surya Kant, delivered separate judgments on Kejriwal’s pleas but unanimously agreed on his release.

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Kejriwal had also contested his CBI arrest, which occurred shortly after a Delhi trial court granted him bail in the ED case. His legal team criticised this arrest as an “insurance arrest.”

Conditions for Kejriwal’s release include restrictions on visiting the Chief Minister’s Office or Delhi Secretariat and signing government files without the approval of Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena. He is also required to post a ₹50,000 bail bond with a similar surety and must avoid making statements about the case or interacting with witnesses.

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The court noted that the trial’s conclusion was not expected soon, aligning with earlier rulings in high-profile bail hearings for ex-Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, AAP MP Sanjay Singh, and Telangana politician K Kavitha, who were also released on similar grounds.

Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva reacted to the Apex court granting bail to Kejriwal, stating that while CM may have secured bail, he has no right to continue as the Delhi CM.

Sachdeva argued that the conditions imposed on Kejriwal, including restrictions on his official duties, raise questions about his ability to govern effectively.

He further emphasized that if Kejriwal is truly honest, such conditions would not have been necessary, and he should consider resigning.

Sachdeva also noted that the SC has validated Kejriwal’s arrest and the charges against him.

He compared Kejriwal to former Chief Ministers like Jayalalithaa, Lalu Yadav, and Madhu Koda, who also faced legal trials after being granted bail, predicting that Kejriwal would face a similar fate with a lengthy prison sentence.

The BJP leader dismissed the conditional bail as no major achievement and maintained that the legal proceedings would continue.