Supreme Court to hear Arvind Kejriwal’s plea against arrest by ED on July 12 | Latest News India

A bench led by Justice Sanjiv Khanna will announce the verdict on July 12.

The apex court reserved its verdict on Kejriwal’s plea on May 17. During the hearing, Additional Solicitor General SV Raju informed the court that there was evidence of money being sent to the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) through hawala channels. Raju also said the ED found chats between Kejriwal and hawala operators about the alleged crime proceeds.

Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, representing Kejriwal, argued that the evidence the ED now cites to justify Kejriwal’s arrest was not available at the time of his arrest.

On May 10, the Supreme Court granted Kejriwal interim bail until June 1 in the money laundering case connected to the Delhi excise policy. However, the court ordered him not to visit the Chief Minister’s Office or the Delhi Secretariat.

The court asked Kejriwal to surrender on June 2, which he did.

The SC’s judgement will address Kejriwal’s appeal against a Delhi High Court decision that dismissed his plea against the ED’s arrest and subsequent remand in the excise policy case.

Kejriwal, in his appeal to the Supreme Court, argued that his arrest after the announcement of the General Elections was “motivated by extraneous considerations”.

On April 9, the Delhi high court dismissed Kejriwal’s plea for release from jail, rejecting his argument of political vendetta amid the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. The Delhi HC further noted that Kejriwal’s failure to respond to nine ED summons over six months weakened his claim of special privilege as Chief Minister, suggesting his arrest was a consequence of his non-cooperation.

Kejriwal was arrested by the ED on March 21 in connection with a money laundering investigation related to alleged irregularities in the now-cancelled Delhi excise policy 2021-22.