Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has been sent to judicial custody until July 12th in connection with a corruption case related to the alleged excise scam. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Saturday sought 14 days of judicial custody for Kejriwal, arguing that his incarceration was necessary for the "interest of the investigation and justice." Special Judge Sunena Sharma reserved the order after Kejriwal was produced in court upon the expiry of his three-day police custody.
The CBI's remand application highlighted several concerns about Kejriwal's cooperation during the custodial interrogation. The agency claimed that the Delhi CM did not cooperate with the investigation and provided evasive replies that were inconsistent with 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," the application stated.
The CBI further questioned the timing and manner of the policy's approval. "He also could not explain why, during the peak of the second wave of Covid, the cabinet approval for the revised excise policy was obtained through circulation in a hurried manner 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 detailed how Kejriwal allegedly evaded questions about meetings between his associate Vijay Nair and various stakeholders in the liquor business in Delhi. He was also unable to provide satisfactory explanations regarding his meetings with Magunta Sreenivasulu Reddy, Arjun Pandey, and Mootha Gautham, all of whom are accused in the case.
The CBI alleged that Kejriwal avoided answering questions about the transfer and utilization of ill-gotten money amounting to Rs. 44.54 crores, which was allegedly used in the Goa assembly elections by his party during 2021-22. "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 read.
With crucial witnesses yet to be examined and documents or digital evidence still to be collected, the CBI sought Kejriwal's 14-day judicial custody to ensure the thorough continuation of the investigation and justice. The court's decision to place Kejriwal in judicial custody marks a significant development in the ongoing investigation into the alleged excise scam.
