In a setback for Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, the Delhi High Court on Thursday rejected his petition seeking to halt the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) coercive measures against him in connection with the money laundering inquiry linked to the defunct Delhi excise policy. Justices Suresh Kumar Kait and Manoj Jain, heading the bench, declined to grant relief to Kejriwal at this stage.
Kejriwal approached the court following the ninth summon issued by the ED, demanding his appearance on Thursday. The Chief Minister has consistently rebuffed the agency’s summonses, labeling them as illegal.
“The petition lacks merit, which was our primary argument. In our view, it lacks merit, and it’s a desperate move on his part to file the petition. The Delhi High Court has stated that we are not inclined to provide interim relief,” stated Additional Solicitor General (ASG) SV Raju to the press.
The case revolves around alleged corruption and money laundering in devising and implementing the Delhi government’s excise policy for 2021-22, subsequently annulled. AAP leaders Manish Sisodia and Sanjay Singh are presently in judicial custody in connection with the case.
A verbal spat between the BJP and AAP has ensued over the investigation agency’s summonses to Arvind Kejriwal. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) accused the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief, who commenced his political journey vowing to combat corruption, of evading an inquiry into a purported “scam.”
Nalin Kohli, speaking to news agency ANI, criticized Kejriwal’s avoidance of the eight summonses issued by the Enforcement Directorate. Kohli highlighted the irony of Kejriwal, once championing the fight against corruption, now evading scrutiny into an alleged corruption scandal. He pointed out that two of Kejriwal’s ministers are currently incarcerated without bail as part of the liquor scam investigation.
“The CM of Delhi, under whose leadership his ministers operate, has chosen to disregard or evade 8 summonses thus far… But the question remains, what is he so fearful of that he’s evading participation in the investigation?” Kohli queried.
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