The two-judge bench, comprising Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan, had reserved the order on September 5, after the hearing was concluded. The AAP chief was arrested by the CBI on June 26.
The bench, however, applied a few conditions before releasing the Aam Aadmi Party supremo. While reading out the judgment, Justice Surya Kant said, “We direct Arvind Kejriwal to be released on bail subject to bail bonds of Rs 10 lakhs.”
The court further directed Kejriwal to not make any public comments about the case and be present for all hearings before trial court unless exempted.
The Delhi CM will likely be walking out of jail today (September 13).
A win for AAP ahead of elections
Aam Aadmi Party’s national convenor Arvind Kejriwal’s bail can be seen as a big win for the party ahead of key elections scheduled in the upcoming months. After unsuccessful alliance talks with Congress, Kejriwal-led party has decided to go solo in contest. AAP has announced candidates for all 90 seats of the Haryana Assembly.
Arvind Kejriwal’s ‘insurance arrest’ claim
Kejriwal told the Court that his arrest by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in connection with the alleged scam was a strategic move.
Senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, representing Kejriwal, said during the hearing that the CBI had not arrested the chief minister for nearly two years, and the arrest came after he was granted bail in a related money laundering case filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
“I go back to jail on June 2 and the next judgment form SC is on July 12, then on June 25 this arrest takes place in CBI case even though no arrest ever happened in three years. This was a case of insurance arrest,” Singhvi had said.
He further argued before Justices Kant and Bhuyan that Kejriwal, a constitutional office bearer, poses no flight risk and was not named in the CBI’s First Information Report (FIR). He also pointed out that no prior notice was served to Kejriwal before his arrest, and the trial court issued an ex-parte arrest order.
The case stems from allegations of irregularities in the Delhi excise policy, which was scrapped in 2022 following the Delhi lieutenant governor’s order for a CBI investigation. The CBI and ED claim that the policy’s modifications led to corruption, with undue advantages granted to license holders.
Kejriwal had challenged the Delhi High Court’s August 5 order, which upheld his arrest as legal and suggested that the Aam Aadmi Party leader could potentially influence witnesses. While the Supreme Court has granted bail in the money laundering case, Kejriwal remains incarcerated under the CBI’s charges.
The excise policy was scrapped in 2022 after the Delhi lieutenant governor ordered a CBI probe into alleged irregularities and corruption involving its formulation and execution.
According to the CBI and the ED, irregularities were committed while modifying the excise policy and undue favours extended to licence holders.
