The Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal from his residence late evening on March 21 after the latter defied its summons for the ninth time in connection with a money laundering case linked to the scrapped Delhi liquor policy. A local court on Friday sent Kejriwal, the country’s first serving CM ever to be arrested, to ED custody until March 28. He had earlier moved the Supreme Court challenging his arrest but withdrew the petition on Friday before it could be taken up, saying he would approach a lower court first.
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What Is The Delhi Excise Policy Case?
The Delhi excise policy of 2021-22, which has since been withdrawn, is being investigated by two agencies. While the CBI is probing one case, the money laundering angle is being investigated by the ED.
The Delhi excise policy, implemented In November 2021, was scrapped in July 2022 soon after Delhi Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar submitted a report to Lieutenant Governor (LG) Vinai Kumar Saxena, noting certain “procedural lapses” in its formulation.
#WATCH | Panaji, Goa: On the arrest of Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal by ED, Goa Legislative Assembly LoP Yuri Alemao says, “The timing of the arrest is questionable. It shows the dictatorial attitude of the BJP. It consists of its ally partners NDA, ED, CBI and IT. They are all… pic.twitter.com/0bwCyCfSH3
— ANI (@ANI) March 23, 2024
As reported before, the chief secretary alleged “arbitrary and unilateral decisions” taken by former Deputy CM Manish Sisodia who was also the excise minister, causing financial losses to the tune of over Rs 580 crore to the exchequer.
Sisodia was arrested on February 26, 2023, after Saxena asked for a CBI probe citing the top Delhi bureaucrat’s report that accused the former of providing undue benefits to liquor vend licensees by bending rules.
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Kumar’s report alleged that “kickbacks” were received by the AAP government in Delhi and party leaders from the owners and operators running alcohol businesses were used to “influence” the Punjab and Goa elections held in 2022. According to the report, the “kickbacks” were demanded and received in lieu of discounts and extensions in licence fees, relief due to disruptions caused by the pandemic, waiver on penalties, etc, according to The Indian Express.
The separate ED probe looking into the money laundering angle in the alleged excise scam claimed that a certain “south group”, comprising individuals from South India connected to a liquor lobby, paid Rs 100 crore in “kickbacks” to the AAP for its Goa assembly election campaign through one of the arrested accused, a businessman.
#WATCH | Delhi excise policy matter | Delhi Minister Atishi says, “In the so-called excise policy scam of Delhi, CBI and ED investigations have been going on for the past two years. In these two years, a question has come up again and again – Where is the money trail? Where did… pic.twitter.com/gPkhhfuZEB
— ANI (@ANI) March 23, 2024
In November 2021, in its first prosecution complaint, the ED said the excise policy was “formulated with deliberate loopholes”, which “promoted cartel formations through the back door”, as reported by The Indian Express.
According to the ED, the “south group” attained stakes in “multiple retail zones (over and above what was allowed in the policy)” besides securing “uninhibited access” and “undue favours”. The ED has identified K Kavitha, a Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader and daughter of former Telangana CM K Chandrashekar Rao, as a member of this “South Group”. She was arrested on March 15. Three days later, the agency named Kejriwal a conspirator in the case for the first time.
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What Are The Charges Against Arvind Kejriwal?
The Delhi CM has been arrested in connection with a money laundering case linked to the excise policy that was scrapped later. In its remand application, the ED has told the court that Kejriwal was the “kingpin and key conspirator of the Delhi excise scam”. It also said the AAP convener “was involved in the conspiracy…to favour certain persons” and also in “demanding kickbacks from liquor businessmen in exchange of favours”.
The ED has said Kejriwal was “directly involved in the formulation” of the liquor policy.
“ED investigation revealed that Ms K Kavitha along with others conspired with the top leaders of AAP including Arvind Kejriwal and (former Deputy Chief Minister) Manish Sisodia for getting favours in the Delhi excise policy formulation and implementation. In exchange for these favours, she was involved in paying Rs 100 crore to the leaders of AAP,” an ED spokesperson has been quoted as saying.
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The party has, however, said Kejriwal’s arrest was based on the statement of a single person, Sharad Chandra Reddy, an accused in the excise police case.
At a press conference Saturday, Delhi minister Atishi said: “Sharad Chandra Reddy’s statement resulted in Kejriwal’s arrest. He was granted bail shortly after making his statement.”
She also said Reddy bought electoral bonds worth Rs 4.5 crore for the BJP. Following the arrest, the BJP received 55 crore in bonds.
Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, who is representing Kejriwal in court, told the court that the Delhi CM was arrested “based on three or four names”.
Arguing that there is no “evidence of any wrongdoing”, he said “more than 80%” of the accused have not mentioned Kejriwal in their statements. “The case has been stitched together by the words of some co-accused and the (Delhi) L-G and approvers,” he said. “No incriminating material has been found against me even after over one year has elapsed.”