Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has been granted interim bail by the Supreme Court in the money laundering probe conducted by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). The court referred Kejriwal’s petition challenging his arrest to a larger Bench, highlighting the need to review the necessity and proportionality of arrests made by the ED.
A Bench comprising Justices Sanjv Khanna and Dipankar Datta framed key questions related to the powers and policies governing ED arrests. Kejriwal will be released on interim bail under the conditions set forth in the order of May 10.
However, Kejriwal will remain in custody due to a separate case being investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) concerning the excise policy matter.
The Supreme Court clarified that it cannot mandate Kejriwal to step down from his position as Delhi Chief Minister following his arrest, stressing that such decisions are at Kejriwal’s discretion.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) reacted to the court’s decision with a tweet from its official handle – Satyameva Jayate.
Senior AAP leader Sanjay Singh, who is also involved in the case and out on bail, reiterated that Kejriwal has been wrongly implicated. He criticised the government, stating, “PM Modi, how long will you suppress truth with false cases? The nation witnesses your autocracy.”
Kejriwal was arrested in March by the ED in connection with alleged corruption related to the now-defunct liquor sales policy. While a trial court had granted him bail on June 20, the Delhi High Court subsequently stayed this order.
