Excise Policy Arvind Kejriwal moves Delhi HC seeking no coercive action by ED in excise policy case
New Delhi/IBNS: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has filed a fresh plea in the high court seeking no coercive action against him by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in the excise policy case, media reports said.
During the hearing in the high court on Wednesday, advocate Abhishek Singhvi, who represented Kejriwal, claimed his client has an apprehension that he would be arrested in the middle of the Lok Sabha elections.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief, who has skipped as many as nine summons served by the Enforcement Directorate so far, appeared before Delhi's Rouse Avenue Court last week after he was asked to appear by the court.
Kejriwal was granted bail on a bond of Rs. 15,000 and a surety of Rs. 1 lakh.
The probe agency is investigating the Delhi excise policy which has handed over liquor shop licences to private players.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) alleges that liquor companies and middlemen were "actively involved in irregularities in the framing and implementation" of the excise policy.
Former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister and Kejriwal's colleague in the party, Manish Sisodia, is already in jail in the same case as the prime accused.
In April last year, the CBI questioned Kejriwal as a witness for nine hours, after which he slammed the agency.
The ED has been summoning him since November 2.
Kejriwal, who is one of the prominent opposition leaders in the country, has called the ED summons as a "political vendetta" by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which runs the Centre but is out of power in the union territory.
The Chief Minister, who is a staunch opponent of BJP, said the saffron brigade wants to bring an attack on his "asset" which is "honesty".
He said, "A lot of my party leaders have been arrested on fake charges. Anyone is picked up and sent to jail. It's an open goondaism.
"Now BJP wants to arrest me. My biggest asset is my honesty. BJP wants to defame me by making false allegations against me and attacking my honesty."
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