Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday agreed to appear before the Enforcement Directorate, contending its illegality but expressing a willingness to respond to the summons in connection with the money laundering case linked to the now-scrapped liquor policy.
He has sought a date after March 12 from the probe agency, expressing his intention to address queries via video conferencing, as reported by ANI.
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The Enforcement Directorate had issued an eighth summons to Kejriwal, asking him to appear for questioning on March 4. However, he decided to skip it, citing the Delhi government’s budget presentation in the assembly later that day.
Kejriwal has consistently avoided multiple summonses by the ED, deeming them illegal and asking the agency to wait due to the matter being in court. He is also scheduled to appear before a city court on March 16 in connection with a complaint filed by the ED regarding his non-compliance with summonses.
Also Read:Arvind Kejriwal skips 7th ED summons, AAP says ‘matter is in court’
On February 26, Kejriwal skipped the seventh summons from the ED, with the AAP claiming that the matter was pending in court and scheduled for a hearing on March 16. The party urged the ED to wait for the court’s decision instead of repeatedly summoning him.
The previous seven summons were issued on February 26, February 14, February 2, January 18, January 3, December 22, 2023 and November 2, 2023.
On the 17th of February, a Delhi court granted permission for Kejriwal to physically appear before it on the 16th of March in connection with a recent complaint from the Enforcement Directorate. The complaint accused him of skipping five summonses in the excise policy case, with Kejriwal citing a debate on a trust motion in the House as the reason.
Also Read:ED summons Arvind Kejriwal for 8th time in Delhi liquor policy case on March 4
Subsequently, the court scheduled 10 am on the 16th of March as the next date for Kejriwal’s physical appearance.
On the 7th of February, Kejriwal was directed to appear before the court after the Enforcement Directorate filed the complaint on the 3rd of February, asserting that he did not comply with previous summonses in the liquor policy case. The court stressed that the AAP leader was “legally bound” to comply.
The complaint was lodged under Section 174 of the IPC for non-attendance in obedience to an order from a public servant and Section 50 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
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The Enforcement Directorate intends to record Kejriwal’s statement in the Delhi liquor policy 2021-22 case, focusing on aspects such as the formulation of policy, meetings held before its finalisation, and allegations of bribery.
The probe agency alleges that the AAP utilised kickbacks worth Rs 45 crore, generated through the policy, as part of its assembly poll campaign in Goa in 2022.