The Supreme Court today granted the bail to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. The Supreme Court has deemed the CBI’s arrest of Kejriwal unjustified. Justice Ujjal Bhuyan stated that further detention by the CBI on the same charges is no longer justifiable. He emphasized the presumption of innocence, noting that bail should be the norm and imprisonment an exception. He stressed that the pre-trial process should not amount to a punishment.
Justice Ujjal Bhuyan announced that the criminal appeal filed by Arvind Kejriwal is granted, overturning the High Court’s decision. Consequently, the Delhi Chief Minister will be released on bail.
Justice Ujjal Bhuyan expressed serious concerns about the conditions restricting Arvind Kejriwal from entering the secretariat or signing files. However, he refrained from commenting on these conditions due to judicial restraint, as they pertain to a separate ED case.
Supreme Court grants bail to Delhi Chief Minister and AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal in a corruption case registered by CBI in the alleged excise policy scam.
Supreme Court says prolonged incarceration amounts to unjust deprivation of liberty. pic.twitter.com/6LoZkISNO4
— ANI (@ANI) September 13, 2024
Kejriwal was seeking bail and contesting his arrest by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in connection with the excise policy case.
Key details about the ruling:
Kejriwal has filed two petitions: one challenging the denial of bail and the other contesting his CBI arrest in the corruption case.
The AAP leader was arrested by the CBI on June 26.
He has approached the Supreme Court, contesting the Delhi High Court’s August 5 ruling, which upheld his arrest in the corruption case. The High Court noted that sufficient evidence was gathered following Kejriwal’s arrest, justifying the action.
The Delhi High Court also granted Kejriwal the option to approach a trial court for bail.
The case revolves around alleged corruption in the framing and execution of the now-scrapped excise policy for the 2021-22 period.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has also filed a money laundering case tied to this alleged “scam.” Kejriwal was arrested by the ED on March 21 regarding this matter.
Both the CBI and ED claim that irregularities in modifying the excise policy resulted in undue benefits to license holders.
On July 12, the Supreme Court granted Kejriwal interim bail in the money laundering case. Additionally, the court referred three critical questions about the “necessity of arrest” under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) to a larger bench for a detailed review.
During a hearing on September 5, Kejriwal opposed the CBI’s argument that he should have first approached the trial court for bail in the corruption case.
The CBI’s representative, Additional Solicitor General SV Raju, argued that the Supreme Court had directed Kejriwal to approach the trial court first in the money laundering case as well.