The Delhi High Court on Friday halted the release of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Arvind Kejriwal on bail after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) challenged the trial court’s bail order in the money laundering case related to the Delhi excise policy.
The plea was presented before a vacation bench of Justices Sudhir Kumar Jain and Ravinder Dudeja by Additional Solicitor General (ASG) SV Raju on behalf of the ED.
“I am requesting an urgent stay. The order was pronounced yesterday at 8 PM, but it has not been uploaded. We were not given a fair chance to oppose the bail,” he said.
The ASG cited a report from Bar & Bench to support his claim that he was not given adequate opportunity by the trial court to oppose the bail plea.
“The report indicates that my arguments were curtailed. My request for a stay on the bail order wasn’t even considered. I am demanding that the order be stayed and the matter be heard as soon as possible. We were denied the full opportunity to argue the case. I make these allegations seriously,” the ASG stated.
Senior Advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, representing Kejriwal, opposed the request for a stay.
“There are ten Supreme Court judgments stating that the cancellation of bail is radically different from the grant of bail,” he argued.
After hearing the counsel, the High Court directed that the bail order should not be enforced until the Court hears the matter.
“The bail order will not be enforced. We have not passed the final order. You may present your arguments fully,” the Court said, halting Kejriwal’s release.
The matter was then scheduled for a hearing today.
The trial court had granted bail to Kejriwal on Thursday. Vacation Judge Niyay Bindu had ordered Kejriwal’s release on a bail bond of ₹1 lakh. The ED had requested the court to stay Kejriwal’s release for 48 hours, but the judge refused.
Kejriwal was arrested by the ED on March 21, accused of being part of a conspiracy to leave intentional loopholes in the now-scrapped Delhi Excise Policy for 2021-22, benefiting certain liquor sellers. The ED alleged that kickbacks from liquor sellers were used to fund the AAP’s electoral campaign in Goa, holding Kejriwal, as the National Convenor of the party, personally and vicariously liable for money laundering.
Kejriwal has denied the allegations, accusing the ED of running an extortion racket.
Other AAP leaders arrested in the same case include former Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi, Manish Sisodia, and Member of Parliament Sanjay Singh. Singh is currently out on bail, while Sisodia remains in jail.
In May, the Supreme Court granted interim bail to Kejriwal to allow him to campaign for the Lok Sabha elections. He returned to jail on June 2 after the interim bail period ended.
Kejriwal’s application for interim bail on medical grounds was rejected by the trial court on June 5. Subsequently, his regular bail plea on merits was allowed by the trial court, prompting the ED to approach the High Court.
