Delhi HC asks ED to show proof against Arvind Kejriwal by 2:30 pm today

The Delhi High Court has asked the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to show proof against Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal by 2:30 pm today, India Today reported on Thursday. Kejriwal has filed a plea seeking protection from coercive action in Delhi's excise policy-linked money-laundering case.

During the hearing, the HC asked the central probe agency if it had any material against the chief minister. To this, the agency said it has sufficient material.  

Kejriwal has moved the court in the wake of the latest summons, the ninth issued by the ED, asking him to appear before it by 11 am on Thursday. However, he skipped the summon again. He has repeatedly refused to appear before the agency, calling the summonses illegal.

On Wednesday, the court had asked him why he was not appearing before the agency. Senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, appearing for Kejriwal, had then said his client would appear before the ED but protection from coercive action was required because of the agency's "clear intent" to apprehend him with elections around the corner.

In the petition, Kejriwal has said the arbitrary procedure under PMLA was being employed to create a non-level playing field for the upcoming general elections to "skew the electoral process in the favour of the ruling party at the Centre".

The ED is probing corruption and money laundering in formulating and executing the Delhi government's excise policy for 2021-22, which was later scrapped. AAP leaders Manish Sisodia and Sanjay Singh are in judicial custody in the case.

The agency has alleged that the accused were in touch with Kejriwal for formulating the excise policy that resulted in undue benefits to them, in return for which they paid kickbacks to the AAP.

Interestingly, conman Sukesh Chandrashekhar recently said that Kejriwal would be exposed to another level. "All your corrupt associates, including the king of corruption, my dearest Arvind Kejriwal, are going to be exposed to another level. Thousands of crores that you and your party have looted and stacked in Singapore, Hong Kong and Germany will all be out in open," Sukesh said in a letter to K Kavitha.

The ED recently arrested Kavitha for allegedly conspiring with Kejriwal.  

(With inputs from PTI)