Kejriwal arrested last night
BBN Bureau
New Delhi: A Delhi Court on Friday remanded Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to six days of Enforcement Directorate (ED) custody in the money laundering case related to the alleged liquor policy scam case till March 28.
Special CBI judge Kaveri Baweja of the Rouse Avenue Courts passed the order after Kejriwal was produced today following his arrest last night by the central probe agency, hours after a division bench of the Delhi High Court refused to pass orders granting him interim protection from coercive action.
Kejriwal had skipped nine summons issued to him by ED. Aam Aadmi Party leaders Manish Sisodia and Sanjay Singh are also accused in the case and are presently in judicial custody.
Additional Solicitor General SV Raju appearing for the agency had sought 10 days remand. ED 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 Rs100 crores. Even at the time of search last night, it is alleged that Kejriwal did not give correct facts. “Confrontation is required. We need to recover the money trail. It is a fit case to grant remand,” ASG said.
Three Senior counsel- Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Vikram Chaudhary and Ramesh Gupta appeared for Kejriwal. Singhvi submitted that till yesterday, in the proceedings before High Court, ED did not disclose that Kejriwal is being probed as an accused in the case. He submitted that the threshold for arrest under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) is very high. Section 19 PMLA provides arrest may be effected if the agency, on the basis of material in its possession, has reason to believe that that the accused has been “guilty” of an offence punishable under the Act. Singhvi said ED failed to show the “necessity” to arrest the incumbent Chief Minister of the national capital. “There is no direct evidence,” he claimed.
