- By Vivek Raj
- Tue, 28 May 2024 11:10 AM (IST)
- Source:JND
The Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to grant an urgent hearing to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's plea for a seven-day extension of his interim bail on medical grounds. The vacation bench deemed it appropriate for the Chief Justice of India to make a decision regarding the listing of the plea as the application for extension of bail has been moved in a case in which the judgment has already been reserved.
Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi representing AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal had approached the apex court seeking an extension of his interim bail, citing medical reasons as he has to undergo several tests. Singhvi had requested to list the plea considering that the Chief Minister is required to surrender on June 1 in the money laundering case registered against him by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
However, the vacation bench opted not to entertain the request for an urgent hearing and deferred the matter to the Chief Justice of India.
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'Let the Chief Justice of India take a call,' Justice JK Maheshwari said.
The court also asked Singhvi "Why did not you mention before Justice Datta last week?, to which he replied that the prescription was given a day before yesterday.
On May 17, the Supreme Court reserved its verdict on Arvind Kejriwal's plea against his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). It was a bench of Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Datta which had granted interim bail on May 10 to Delhi CM Kejriwal till June 1 so that he can campaign in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections.
AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on March 21 on many laundering charges linked to the Delhi liquor policy scam. The ED’s probe against Kejriwal stems from a case registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on a complaint by Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena in 2022. It has been alleged that a criminal conspiracy was hatched by AAP leaders, including Kejriwal, former Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and others to create loopholes in the now-scrapped Delhi liquor Policy to favour some liquor sellers in granting licenses.
The federal agency has alleged that AAP received kickbacks after granting licenses to the 'South group' and used the amount in the Punjab and Goa Assembly elections. The ED had said to court that Arvind Kejriwal is the 'kingpin' of the scam.