Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was on Monday sent to 15-day judicial custody in connection with the Delhi liquor policy case. Delhi's Rouse Avenue Court delivered the verdict following the end of Kejriwal's custody with the Enforcement Directorate (ED) today.
During today's hearing, Additional Solicitor General SV Raju, appearing for the ED, said that the agency is not asking for further remand in light of the Supreme Court's recent judgment in Senthil Balaji's case.
SV Raju argued that Kejriwal's conduct in the lock-up was "totally non-cooperative" and he was providing authorities with "evasive replies". He also claimed that the Delhi Chief Minister was "misleading (the) investigation" into the liquor case.
"In future we may require custody. That's the only purpose [of the statement]," SV Raju told the court.
Arvind Kejriwal's lawyers have also moved an application to allow the Delhi Chief Minister to carry three books - Bhagavad Geeta, Ramayan and How Prime Ministers Decide by journalist Neerja Chaudhary - in jail.
Furthermore, The Delhi High Court has directed the Enforcement Directorate to file a status report before the trial court on a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking to restrain Arvind Kejriwal from issuing orders or directions from custody. The High Court has ordered the federal agency to treat the PIL as its own representation.
Arvind Kejriwal was arrested on March 21 by the Enforcement Directorate, and was sent to the custody of the federal agency till March 28. Then, his custody was extended by four days and it ended today.
The Delhi Chief Minister's arrest came a day after the Opposition INDIA bloc's mega rally in the national capital on Sunday against the arrest of Kejriwal.
The 'Loktantra Bachao' rally at the Ramlila Maidan witnessed the participation of Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, party leaders Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti, former Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut, NCP (SCP) chief Sharad Pawar, among others.
Arvind Kejriwal's wife Sunita Kejriwal and former Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren's wife, Kalpana Soren, also addressed the gathering.
Sunita Kejriwal read out a message from her husband, which said, "I present six guarantees on behalf of the INDIA Alliance. First, there will be no power cuts in the whole country. Second, electricity would be free for poor people. Third, we will build government schools in every village. Fourth, we will build Mohalla Clinics in every village. We will make a multi-speciality government hospital in every district. Everyone would get free treatment."
"Fifth, farmers would be given the correct price for the crops. Sixth, the people of Delhi have faced injustice for 75 years. We will give statehood to Delhi. We will complete these six guarantees in five years. I have done all the planning from where the money for these guarantees will come. My resolve has become even stronger in jail, I will soon come out."
