Excise policy case: Delhi court sends Kejriwal to judicial custody till July 12

New Delhi: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has been sent to judicial custody till July 12 in connection with the money-laundering case linked to the now-scrapped policy.Kejriwal was produced in court by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) after the expiry of his three-day custodial interrogation where CBI sought 14-day judicial custody of the Delhi CM.

In CBI’s remand application, it stated that during the custodial interrogation, Kejriwal did not cooperate with the investigation and gave evasive replies contrary to the evidence on record.”On being confronted with the evidence, he did not give a proper and truthful explanation regarding the enhancement of the profit margin for wholesalers from 5% to 12% under the new excise policy of Delhi 2021-22, without any study or justification,” it said.

“He also could not explain why during the peak of the second wave of Covid, the cabinet approval for revised excise policy was hurriedly obtained through circulation within one day, when the accused persons of the South Group were camping in Delhi and holding meetings with his close associate Vijay Nair,” it added.

The application said that Kejriwal avoided the questions regarding the meetings of his associate Vijay Nair with various stakeholders of the liquor business in Delhi. He was also unable to give proper explanation about his meeting with Magunta Sreenivasulu Reddy, accused Arjun Pandey and Mootha Gautham.

“He also evaded the questions regarding the transfer and utilisation of ill-gotten money to the tune of Rs.44.54 crores in Goa assembly elections by his party during 2021-22,” it said, adding that Kejriwal was “deliberately and intentionally evading the just and relevant questions related to the case.”

“He, being a prominent politician and chief minister of Delhi, is a very influential person, as such, there are credible reasons to believe that, he may influence the witnesses and evidence already exposed before him during the custodial interrogation and also the potential witnesses, who are yet to be examined, tamper with the evidence to be further collected and may hamper the ongoing investigation,” the application said.

As some crucial witnesses were yet to be examined and documents or digital evidence were yet to be collected, the plea sought Kejriwal’s 14 days judicial custody “in the interest of the investigation and justice”.

Earlier on June 26, the Delhi court had granted Kejriwal’s custody to the CBI after he was questioned by the central agency in Tihar Jail.