Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) sources said on Monday that Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal will not be appearing before the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) for questioning in relation to an excise policy case connected to money laundering. The AAP referred to the ED summons as “illegal,” noting that the court is currently considering whether the summons is still valid.
“ED itself has gone to court. Instead of sending summons again and again, ED should wait for the court’s decision,” a party source said.
On February 2, Kejriwal skipped the ED’s summons for the fifth time in connection with the money laundering probe related to irregularities in the Delhi excise policy 2021-22 case.
Kejriwal, on February 17, appeared before the Rouse Avenue Court via video conferencing following a complaint by the ED over his alleged non-compliance with its summons.
During his virtual appearance, Kejriwal told the court that although he would have liked to attend in person, he was unable to do so because of the budget sessions and the confidence motion. Kejriwal filed an exemption plea, which Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Divya Malhotra granted. Kejriwal’s actual court appearance date was set for March 16, 2024. In response to non-attendance in accordance with Section 50 of PMLA, the ED has filed a new complaint case under Sections 190 (1)(a) and 200 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, Section 174 of the Indian Penal Code, and Section 63 (4) of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
According to the ED, the agency wanted to record Kejriwal’s statement in the case on issues like the formulation of policy, meetings held before it was finalised, and allegations of bribery.
In its sixth charge sheet filed in the case on December 2, 2023, naming AAP leader Sanjay Singh and his aide Sarvesh Mishra, the ED has claimed that the AAP used kickbacks worth Rs 45 crore generated via the policy as part of its assembly elections campaign in Goa in 2022.
The excise policy was aimed at revitalising the city’s flagging liquor business and replacing a sales-volume-based regime with a licence fee for traders.
Better shopping experiences and swankier stores were promised. The policy was the first to introduce discounts and offers on liquor purchases in Delhi. Manish Sisodia and Sanjay Singh, two powerful AAP figures, are already being held in judicial custody. After being questioned for a number of rounds, the CBI arrested Sisodia, who was the deputy chief minister of Delhi at the time, on February 26. The Rajya Sabha member Singh was taken into custody by the ED on October 5.
