The Delhi High Court on Monday upheld the arrest of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in connection with the alleged excise policy scam, marking a significant setback for the AAP leader. Justice Neena Bansal Krishna rejected Kejriwal's plea against his arrest, ruling that it was not unjustified.
The high court also dismissed the AAP national convenor’s bail plea, granting him the option to seek relief from the trial court. The high court had on July 17 reserved its order on his plea challenging his arrest by the CBI. It had reserved the order on the AAP leader’s bail plea on July 29 after hearing the arguments of the counsel for Kejriwal and the central agency.
Kejriwal was arrested by the CBI on June 26 while being held in Tihar Jail, where he was in judicial custody due to a related money laundering case filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). Although the chief minister had been granted bail in the money laundering case by the trial court on June 20, this order was subsequently stayed by the high court.