7 May 2024 8:52 AM GMT
A Delhi Court on Tuesday extended till May 20 the judicial custody of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in the money laundering case connected to the liquor policy scam.
Special judge Kaveri Baweja of Rouse Avenue Courts passed the order on the expiry of his judicial custody in the ED case.
Meanwhile, hearing in Supreme Court on the issue of granting interim bail to Kejriwal is currently underway.
Kejriwal was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on the night of March 21.
On April 10, the Delhi High Court dismissed Kejriwal's plea challenging his arrest, observing that ED was able to place enough material, statements of approvers and AAP's own candidate stating that Kejriwal was given money for Goa elections.
The Delhi Chief Minister has challenged the said order of the Delhi High Court bench of Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma before the Top Court. The Supreme Court is hearing his plea today.
AAP leaders Manish Sisodia and Sanjay Singh are also accused in the ED case. While Sisodia continues to remain in jail, Singh was recently granted bail by the Supreme Court pursuant to a concession given by the ED.
ED has alleged that Arvind Kejriwal is the "kingpin" of Delhi excise scam and is directly involved in the use of proceeds of crime accounting to over Rs. 100 crores.
It is ED's case that the excise policy was implemented as part of a conspiracy to give wholesale business profit of 12 percent to certain private companies, although such a stipulation was not mentioned in the minutes of meetings of Group of Ministers (GoM).
The Central agency has also claimed that there was a conspiracy that was coordinated by Vijay Nair and other individuals along with South Group to give extraordinary profit margins to wholesalers.
Nair was acting on behalf of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Manish Sisodia, according to the agency.