According to sources, Arvind Kejriwal, the Chief Minister of Delhi and the national convenor of AAP, has been taken into custody by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with the excise policy case.
Atishi, a leader of AAP and a Minister in Delhi, stated that they have filed a petition in the Supreme Court to request the cancellation of Kejriwal’s arrest and have requested an immediate hearing.
“We have moved the Supreme Court for quashing the arrest of Delhi CM @ArvindKejriwal by ED. We have asked for an urgent hearing by the Supreme Court tonight itself,” Atishi said in a post on X.
We have moved the Supreme Court for quashing the arrest of Delhi CM @ArvindKejriwal, by ED. We have asked for an urgent hearing by the Supreme Court tonight itself.
— Atishi (@AtishiAAP) March 21, 2024
Previously, she had mentioned that Kejriwal would continue to govern from jail.
“We have received news that ED has arrested Arvind Kejriwal… We have always said that Arvind Kejriwal will run the govt from jail. He will remain the CM of Delhi. We have filed a case in the Supreme Court. Our lawyers are reaching SC. We will demand SC have an urgent hearing tonight,” she said.
According to sources, an Enforcement Directorate team visited Kejriwal’s residence on Thursday for interrogation regarding the liquor policy case. They carried out a search operation at his residence.
The Enforcement Directorate team arrived at his residence for questioning shortly after the Delhi High Court denied interim protection to Kejriwal from coercive measures in relation to the excise policy case.
AAP workers staged a protest outside Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal’s residence. The Delhi High Court, refusing interim protection from arrest in the liquor policy case, stated that it was not inclined to do so at this time.
During the hearing on a plea by the AAP supremo, urging coercive action against him in connection with the excise policy case, the court issued the directive. AAP leader Raghav Chadha labeled the ED’s action as a conspiracy aimed at arresting the Delhi Chief Minister just before the Lok Sabha elections.
“Just before the Lok Sabha elections, a big conspiracy is going on to arrest Arvind Kejriwal ji. Kejriwal ji has the blessings of crores of people. The wonderful works done in Delhi and Punjab are being discussed all over the world today. You can arrest Kejriwal’s body but cannot put Kejriwal’s ideology behind bars,” Chadha said in a post on X.
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann asserted that the BJP’s political team, referring to the ED, cannot imprison Kejriwal’s ideology. “It is only the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) that can stop the BJP. Thoughts and ideas can never be suppressed,” he said.
Delhi Minister Imran Hussain said, “It’s very unfortunate. It’s a conspiracy to stop the AAP and Arvind Kejriwal. People of Delhi love Arvind Kejriwal and they’ll respond to the BJP.”
The ED had issued multiple summons to the AAP supremo in the excise policy case, which he had avoided, citing that the probe agency had taken legal action against him. According to the ED, they aim to record Kejriwal’s statement regarding various aspects of the case, including the formulation of the now revoked excise policy, pre-finalization meetings, and allegations of bribery.
Two senior AAP leaders, Manish Sisodia and Sanjay Singh, are currently in judicial custody in connection with the excise policy case. Sisodia, who served as the Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi at the time, was arrested by the CBI on February 26 after undergoing several rounds of questioning. Later, on October 5, the ED arrested Sanjay Singh, who holds a position as a Rajya Sabha member.