ED justifies Arvind Kejriwal’s arrest to SC in affidavit; cites his ‘blatant disregard for law’

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday told the Supreme Court that the conduct of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal convinced the investigating officer that arrest of the AAP leader was necessary. The affidavit submitted by the agency was in response to a petition by Arvind Kejriwal challenging his arrest by the ED. The central agency accused the AAP leader of avoiding interrogation by not being present before the investigating officer despite nine summonses. 

Meanwhile, the Aam Aadmi Party responded to the affidavit and called the agency a “machine for telling lies”. 

The ED said that through his conduct, Kejriwal himself contributed and aided the investigating officer regarding the need to arrest him, apart from the material in possession of the investigating officer “to form the satisfaction that the petitioner is guilty of the offence of money laundering”.

It stated that Kejriwal’s petition challenging his arrest is “devoid of merit” and is liable to be dismissed. The ED also added that the material that has formed the basis of satisfaction of the investigating officer to arrest him has been perused by “three different judicial authorities (courts) at three different levels”. 

The ED argued that the Delhi CM’s plea is not one that’s seeking to be released on bail but an appeal for rejection of a writ petition challenging the arrest during the pendency of the investigation even as the prosecution complaint is yet to be filed. 

"In this connection, it is submitted that the petitioner has been arrested bona fide and not for any mala fide or extraneous reasons. It is categorically denied that the arrest was mala fide. Regarding the contention pertaining to mala fide, it is submitted that not only the contentions of the petitioner is baseless and ill-founded but it is vague general and not specific," it said.

The agency further stated that the arrest is part of the investigation and that arrest during investigation is a field exclusively reserved for the investigating agency. 

"Even on the date of the search during his interrogation while recording his statement under Section 17 of the PMLA (Prevention of Money Laundering Act), he was avoiding answering questions by being evasive and totally non-co-operative even with respect to simple non-incriminating questions,” said the ED, arguing that Kejriwal’s “blatant disregard for the law” necessitated his arrest. 

Not only that, the ED said, they also have “sufficient material” in possession to believe that the “accused has been guilty of the offence punishable under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA)”. 

Kejriwal’s arrest became necessary due to his complete non-cooperation, the ED added. 

“The ED has become nothing but a machine for telling lies. Each time the ED comes up with new manufactured lies at the whims of their masters, the BJP,” AAP stated in response. 

Arvind Kejriwal was arrested on March 21, hours after the Delhi High Court refused to grant him protection from coercive action by the ED. On April 9, the court upheld Kejriwal’s arrest, stating that there was no illegality about it, and that the agency was left with “little option”.