The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has accused the vacation court judge at the Rouse Avenue Court of denying the agency the opportunity to present facts against Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in the liquor scam case.
Despite what the ED claims to be glaring evidence of his involvement, the judge granted Kejriwal bail.
Today, the Delhi High Court issued a stay order on the bail granted by Special Judge Niyay Bindu of the Rouse Avenue Court. Judge Bindu had passed the bail order on Thursday evening, stating that the ED acted with bias against Kejriwal and failed to provide direct evidence linking him to the scam.
Sources within the ED reported that the judge did not permit the agency to submit a written statement.
"The court wanted us to conclude the argument early. It was not ready to allow us to file a written submission," sources said.
During the hearing, the ED opposed the bail petition and presented additional evidence purportedly establishing strong links between Kejriwal and a ₹100 crore kickback.
Kejriwal’s lawyer objected to the introduction of this additional evidence at that stage.
According to ED sources, these pieces of evidence should have been considered when deciding Kejriwal's bail but were ignored.
Both the ED and Kejriwal's legal team submitted numerous documents and citations during the hearing, including various pieces of evidence and defense papers.
The court acknowledged that it was not possible to review these thousands of pages at that time.
“But it is the duty of the court to work upon the matter that comes for consideration and pass the order by law. Although, sometimes courts refrain from passing such orders on account of various reasons which may have long-lasting effects. Recently, on CBI Day Celebration, the Hon'ble Chief Justice encouraged trial court judges handling CBI and ED matters, acknowledging their challenging work. The government and higher courts aim to reduce case backlogs and expedite proceedings,” the court observed in the bail order.
ED sources argued that the vacation court admitted in its judgment that it had not reviewed the documents. The agency maintains that bail should not be granted in the name of expediency without considering the merits of the case and the submitted documents.
The ED arrested Kejriwal on charges of accepting ₹100 crore to alter Delhi's liquor policy in favor of the South Group. The court noted that out of the alleged ₹100 crore, about ₹40 crore has been traced, while the remaining ₹60 crore is yet to be tracked. The ED has not clarified how much time is required to trace the complete money trail.
Kejriwal is currently lodged in Tihar Jail. He was previously granted interim bail by the Supreme Court to campaign for his party during the parliamentary elections.
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