New Delhi: The custody of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has been extended until April 15 in connection with an ongoing investigation by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) regarding the excise policy case. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) supremo, facing an inquiry by the ED, had a court hearing where his custody was extended by 15 days.
The Delhi court sent him to Tihar Jail, and security at the jail was beefed up. Arvind Kejriwal was arrested on March 21 and subsequently remanded to the custody of the probe agency until March 28 by a Delhi court. However, his hopes for immediate relief were dashed when the Delhi High Court declined to intervene in his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate.
The case stems from an initial prosecution complaint filed by the Enforcement Directorate in November 2021, alleging that the excise policy was intentionally crafted with loopholes, enabling the surreptitious formation of cartels to favor AAP leaders. Furthermore, the agency has accused AAP leaders of receiving kickbacks from a group referred to as the “South Group.”
The genesis of the case traces back to a report submitted by Delhi Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar to Lieutenant Governor (LG) Vinai Kumar Saxena in July 2022, which highlighted purported procedural irregularities in the development of the excise policy. Kejriwal, addressing the courtroom directly in the previous hearing, accused the ED of attempting to suppress his party, denying any wrongdoing. He emphasized that no court has pronounced him guilty, claiming his arrest to be based on flimsy grounds.
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