Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has moved the Supreme Court against the Delhi High Court’s interim stay on a trial court’s order granting him bail in a money-laundering case linked to the alleged excise scam.Sources said his lawyers are seeking an urgent hearing of the matter.
The high court on Friday paused the release of the embattled chief minister after the trial court granted him bail on June 20. On June 20, Special Judge Niyay Bindu of Rouse Avenue Court had granted regular bail to Kejriwal and declined the ED’s plea to keep the bail order in abeyance for 48 hours. This prompted the ED to approach the high court.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener, who was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on March 21, could have walked out of Tihar Jail on Friday had the high court not granted the interim relief to the federal anti-money laundering agency.
“Till the pronouncement of this order, the operation of the impugned order shall remain stayed,” a vacation bench of the high court said and asked the parties to file written submissions by June 24.
The HC said it wants to go through the “entire record, the impugned judgment” and will pronounce its verdict on the stay application in “two-three days”. It permitted both parties to file short, written submissions by June 24.
