The petition of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the alleged liquor scam and kept on three-day remand, was heard in the Delhi High Court on Tuesday. The High Court has sought a reply from the CBI on the challenge to the arrest and remand of the Aam Aadmi Party chief. The next hearing of this case will now be held on July 17.
Kejriwal's petition was heard by a bench of Justice Neena Bansal Krishna. Kejriwal's lawyer Abhishek Manu Singhvi questioned Kejriwal's arrest and said that the FIR was registered in 2022 itself. He was summoned in April 2023 and questioned for 9 hours. Nothing has been done since then and now Kejriwal has been arrested. He said that it is necessary to mention some reasons in the arrest warrant.
The court asked Singhvi, are you seeking cancellation of arrest and release from custody? When Singhvi replied in the affirmative, the court asked, have you filed a bail petition? Singhvi replied that he has not done so yet, but is going to do so. The court has issued a notice to the CBI and asked it to file a reply. The judge asked to list the case on Saturday.
Let us tell you that Kejriwal was arrested by the CBI from Tihar Jail on June 26. He was in judicial custody in the money laundering case registered by the ED. After the arrest, the lower court sent Kejriwal on three-day CBI remand. After the remand ended, the investigating agency appealed to send Kejriwal to judicial custody, which was accepted by the court.
Kejriwal has also challenged the June 26 order of the special court, under which Kejriwal was sent on three-day CBI remand. He alleged that the CBI made false grounds for the arrest. No reason was given for the arrest. The petition states that his arrest was allegedly made on the basis of material available with the CBI before June 4. Arrest based on already available material is illegal, including re-evaluation, which is not permitted by law.