The Delhi High Court has issued a fresh notice to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal regarding challenges made by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) against his acquittal in two separate summons cases related to the excise policy. The court mandated this notice on Wednesday, and has set the matter for hearing on July 22.
Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma remarked during the proceedings that the prior notice, which the registry indicated had not been served, was issued to Kejriwal on April 1. However, no legal representation has appeared for him thus far.
“The registry reports that (he is) not served. I will issue a fresh notice. The respondent has not been served,” Justice Sharma said, highlighting procedural issues in the case.
The cases originated from the ED’s complaint, where the agency accused Kejriwal, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader, of deliberately failing to answer summons linked to the excise policy investigation. The ED alleged that Kejriwal raised frivolous objections to evade the summons and create excuses for not appearing.
During earlier hearings, the ED’s counsel pointed out that the trial court made a “grave error” in acquitting Kejriwal, asserting that there was clear evidence that summons were duly issued, yet he failed to respond. The trial court’s earlier ruling on January 22 stated that the ED had not sufficiently demonstrated that Kejriwal intentionally disregarded the summons.
The trial court asserted, “Neither the service of summons through emails has been proved by the ED, nor has the process of issuing summons to any person under Section 50(2) of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) via email been shown to comply with legal standards.” This ruling highlighted potential deficiencies in the ED’s procedural approach.
The ED has claimed that Kejriwal was in contact with other accused to formulate an excise policy that allegedly benefited them and resulted in kickbacks to the AAP. Currently, Kejriwal is on interim bail in relation to the money laundering proceedings, awaiting further deliberation by the Supreme Court regarding the necessity of his arrest under the PMLA.
On February 27, the trial court had discharged not only Kejriwal but also former Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and 21 others involved in the liquor policy case, declaring that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) case was unable to withstand judicial scrutiny and lacked credibility.
The CBI has since filed a plea against this discharge, which remains pending in the Delhi High Court. The evolving legal situation involving Kejriwal is critical, as it sheds light on broader governance issues and the accountability of public officials in India.
