Delhi HC dismisses plea to remove Kejriwal as CM
Central agency’s custody of Delhi CM extended till April 1; personally arguing his case, Kejriwal pointed out that a firm named in the alleged excise policy scam had donated money to the BJP, after which its owners managed to secure bail
The Delhi High Court on Thursday rejected a petition seeking the removal of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal from the post, following his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate.
“This court is of the view that there is no scope for judicial interference. It is for the other wing of the government to examine the issue in accordance with the law,” a Bench of Acting Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Manmeet P.S. Arora said.
In his petition, Surjit Singh Yadav demanded that the Union, Delhi governments and the Principal Secretary to the Lieutenant Governor be asked to explain under what authority Mr. Kejriwal is still holding the post of Chief Minister.
He contended that the continuation of Mr. Kejriwal as the Chief Minister would not only lead to disruption of law and order but also lead to the breakdown of the constitutional machinery of the State.
The court, however, asked Mr. Yadav to show the “legal bar” which prohibits Mr. Kejriwal from acting as Chief Minister from behind bars. “If there is a constitutional failure, the President will act on it. Or the Governor will act on it. We will not act on it,” the court stressed.
“239AB (Provision in case of failure of constitutional machinery) is not to be exercised by the high court, it is to be exercised by the Governor. The Governor will exercise it, and it will go to the President, but the problem is, which we are asking you (petitioner) is, is there any scope for judicial interference on this issue,” the high court asked.
“We have read today’s newspaper, the Lieutenant Governor is examining this issue. It will go the President for examination, that is up to them. That (task) belongs to a different wing,” the Bench said.
“There may be practical difficulties. Even today we have matter where the Chief Secretary has been told to placed a file before the Chief Minister. We don’t know how it will operate, what will happen. But that is something else,” it added.
The plea argued that “sitting in jail the Chief Minister is incapable of transacting any business that the law enjoins upon him”.
The Enforcement Directorate’s mission is to finish the Aam Aadmi Party, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal told a court in New Delhi on Thursday.
The court extended his ED custody till April 1.
While being taken to the court, Mr. Kejriwal termed the alleged excise policy scam as a “political conspiracy”, adding that the “people of the country will reply in the matter”. When produced in court, he said he did not wish to oppose the ED’s request for further custody.
Special Judge Kaveri Baweja of the Rouse Avenue Courts passed the remand extension order as the initial sevenday custody period ended on Thursday. The ED had sought seven more days; the court granted a fourday extension.
Mr. Kejriwal was arrested by the agency on March 21 in a money laundering case filed in connection with the nowscrapped Delhi excise policy for 202122, and has been in its custody since then.
Personally arguing his case in Hindi, Mr. Kejriwal said that the ED had two missions, the first of which was to finish off the AAP. “ED ka mission kewal aur kewal mujhe fasana tha [ED’s only mission was to implicate me],” said the AAP’s national convener.
‘Extortion racket’
Alleging that the ED was running an extortion racket in the name of its investigation, Mr. Kejriwal pointed out that a firm named in the alleged excise policy scam had donated money to the ruling BJP, after which its owners managed to secure bail.
“Sarath Reddy [director of Aurobindo Pharma] has donated ₹55 crore to the BJP. I have proof that it’s an extortion racket,” he said.
Questioning his arrest, the Delhi CM claimed that the only evidence against him was statements made by the coaccused in the case. “There were three statements, but the ED only produced those statements in the court in which I am named. Why? There are statements in which I am not named. Why were they not produced in the court?” Mr. Kejriwal said, asking whether a sitting Chief Minister could be arrested merely on the basis of the statements of a few accusedturnedapprovers.
‘Insufficient evidence’
He also questioned the ED’s allegations that C. Aravind had told the agency that he had given some documents to AAP leader Manish Sisodia in Mr. Kejriwal’s presence. “MLAs come to my house every day. Is this statement sufficient to implicate me in the case?” Mr. Kejriwal asked.
Another witness named by the ED had given seven statements, in six of which Mr. Kejriwal had not been mentioned. “In the seventh statement, he brings in my name and he is immediately released,” the Delhi CM said.
Responding to Mr. Kejriwal, the ED’s counsel, Additional Solicitor General S.V. Raju, said that he was giving evasive replies during the interrogation and was refusing to share the passwords of his accounts with the agency. He added that AAP chief was playing to the gallery by attacking the ED, and maintained that the agency has material to show that he had demanded ₹100 crore.