New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday deferred till September 5 hearing on pleas of Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor Arvind Kejriwal seeking regular bail and challenging his arrest in an excise policy-linked corruption case after the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) sought time to file its counter affidavit in one of the pleas.
A bench comprising Justice Surya Kant and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan granted CBI one week of time to file its counter affidavit and posted the matter for further hearing on September 5.
Need time to file counter affidavit in one of the pleas, CBI told apex court
Additional Solicitor General (ASG) SV Raju, who appeared for the CBI, told the bench that the agency has filed its counter affidavit in one of the pleas and it needs some time to file the counter affidavit in another plea.
Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, who appeared for Kejriwal, told the bench that the CBI filed a counter affidavit in only one of the pleas and it was served upon them at 8 pm on Thursday.
Kejriwal is politically sensationalising the case, CBI said in its counter-affidavit
The CBI, in the filed counter affidavit, opposed Kejriwal’s plea and said that he is politically sensationalising the case and the interim bail order in money laundering case registered by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has no bearing on the CBI case and no bail should be granted to him even on medical grounds.
The CBI has further said that the actions of former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia were in consultation with and at the behest of Kejriwal and he has been involved in the formulation and implementation of the Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22.
Kejriwal has moved apex court against Delhi High Court orders
Kejriwal, who is currently lodged in the judicial custody in Tihar Jail in corruption case, has moved the apex court challenging the orders of the Delhi High Court upholding his arrest in the corruption case and directing him to approach the trial court for bail in the corruption case.
Apex court granted Kejriwal interim bail in money laundering case on July 12
The Supreme Court on July 12, while referring Kejriwal’s plea challenging his arrest in the money laundering case to a larger bench, granted Kejriwal interim bail in the money laundering case, saying that certain legal questions raised by him in his plea challenging his arrest by the ED in the money laundering case need to be considered by a larger bench of the apex court.
Kejriwal was arrested by the ED in the money laundering case on March 21 and he was later arrested by the CBI in the corruption case on June 26.
