The Delhi High Court issued a notice to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Tuesday in response to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s plea challenging his arrest by the agency in connection with the alleged excise policy scam. The bench, led by Justice Neena Bansal Krishna, has asked the CBI to respond within seven days.
Kejriwal, who is also the national convenor of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), contested a June 26 trial court order that remanded him to CBI custody for three days. On June 29, the trial court placed Kejriwal in judicial custody until July 12, identifying him as one of the main conspirators in the ongoing investigation.
Kejriwal was arrested by the CBI on June 26 while in judicial custody at Tihar jail for a related money-laundering case filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), where he was detained until July 3.
The CBI alleged that Kejriwal was uncooperative and provided evasive answers during the investigation, expressing concerns that he might influence witnesses. On June 26, the trial court denied declaring his arrest illegal, as requested by the defense, stating, “The timing may be circumspect but it is not the clear criterion for declaring an arrest illegal.” The court added that while the investigation is the agency’s prerogative, safeguards in the law must be observed.
Previously, Kejriwal was arrested by the ED on March 21 and granted bail by the trial court in the money-laundering case on June 20. However, the high court stayed the trial court’s bail order.
The excise policy in question was scrapped in 2022 after the Delhi lieutenant governor ordered a CBI investigation into alleged irregularities and corruption in its formulation and execution. The CBI and ED claimed that the policy was altered to provide undue favors to license holders.