Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) supremo Arvind Kejriwal will be produced before a court on Monday as his probe agency custody ends today.
Kejriwal was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on March 21 in connection to a money laundering case linked to the now-scrapped Delhi excise policy. He was sent to a 7-day ED custody on March 22 which was extended by four days on March 28.
The AAP chief will be produced before Delhi’s Rouse Avenue Court at 11.30 am. Meanwhile, security has been heightened near the court and at the ED headquarters in Delhi, with police barricades put up at the premises.
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Kejriwal has also moved the Delhi High Court against his arrest, arguing that his fundamental rights were violated by the probe agency. The court had issued a notice to the ED, seeking a reply by April 2. The hearing will resume on April 3.
He has dubbed his arrest a “political conspiracy” while his party has been organizing major protests. His arrest just ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls has also prompted furious protests from the opposition camp.
Top opposition leaders of the INDIA alliance organised a mega rally at Delhi’s Ramlila Maidan on Sunday afternoon and pressed for the release of Kejriwal and former Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren, who was arrested by the ED in January in a different case.
Sunita Kejriwal, wife of the Chief Minister, is playing a crucial role in the aftermath of Kejriwal’s arrest, addressing his supporters and conveying his messages from the lock-up.
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On Sunday, she attacked the central government in a fiery speech at the Ramlila Maidan. She also delivered a message from Kejriwal, in which the Chief Minister had made six election promises ahead of the Lok Sabha polls.
Kejriwal is the third AAP leader after his former deputy Manish Sisodia and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh to be arrested in the alleged liquor policy scam. The Delhi CM was arrested after he skipped nine summons by the central agency for questioning.
The excise policy was introduced to bring an overhaul to the liquor business in Delhi but was scrapped after Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena ordered a probe into the alleged irregularities in the policy. The ED believes the policy provided a high profit margin and bribe money was allegedly used to fund the AAP’s election campaigns.
(With inputs from agencies)