The arrest of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was postponed until at least March 16 amid speculation that he may be arrested. The AAP convener secured immunity for his appearance after a Delhi court heard the complaint filed against him by the Enforcement Directorate for ignoring summons. Money laundering case. Kejriwal’s month-long respite was carried out through video conferencing after he appeared in the Rouse Avenue court where the ED charge for allegedly evading earlier summons was being heard.
He sought exemption from grooming for the day, claiming that he was busy attending the budget session of the Delhi Assembly, where a confidence resolution was also scheduled to be tabled. The court accepted his plea and adjourned the hearing till March 16 on the CM’s assurance that he would be physically present at the next hearing. AAP is expecting an announcement for the Lok Sabha elections around March 16 and party strategists believe that if a central government-run agency such as the ED tries to arrest Kejriwal after March 16, Narendra・They claim that it will backfire on the Modi government and confirm suspicions of revenge politics.
AAP leaders have argued that the attempt to jail Kejriwal ahead of the assembly elections could arouse voter sympathy for the party and boost its electoral performance. Earlier this week, the ED had issued the sixth summons to Kejriwal for questioning in a money laundering case related to the now-defunct excise policy in the national capital. The latest subpoena requires him to appear before law enforcement on February 19th.
Earlier, the ED had issued five summons dated February 2, January 18, January 3, December 21 and November 2. However, the CM skipped all five summonses in a row, prompting the Enforcement Directorate to relocate the Rouse Avenue courtroom. In most cases, the CMs refused to respond to earlier ED summons, either because they were preoccupied with AAP’s campaign in assembly elections in core states or because of the ambiguity of the summons.
The CM first asked the ED to clarify whether he is being summoned as the head of the elected government or as the convenor or chairman of the ruling AAP. The complaint filed by the ED for skipping the summons said that the Delhi CM was prima facie “legally obligated” to comply with the summons and appear for questioning. Meanwhile, Delhi BJP leader Virendra Sachdeva criticized Kejriwal for not physically attending the court.
He said, “Kejriwal’s avoidance of appearing before the judiciary, be it in the matter of ED summons or in related cases in relevant courts, shows that he is not aware of his alleged role in the liquor scam. “It shows that he is aware of it and ultimately shows that his arrest was unjustified.” be. “
He added that Kejriwal is currently following the path set by former Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren by postponing court appearances and facing ED questions. But Kejriwal should understand that no matter how far he follows Soren’s path, arrest is inevitable as in Soren’s case.
