The Supreme Court is likely to deliver the verdict on the petition filed by the Delhi Chief Minister seeking interim bail in a money-laundering case linked to the alleged excise policy scam.
Justice Sanjiv Khanna, who headed the bench that hears Kejriwal's petition against his arrest in the case, said the court will pronounce the interim order (on bail) on Friday. "The main matter related to the challenge to arrest will also be taken up on the same day," he told during a hearing on Wednesday.
The court had also said that it could not treat Kejriwal as a habitual offender, hinting at its willingness to grant him bail. The court, however, made it clear that even if the interim bail were granted, Kejriwal would not be allowed to discharge any official duties as Chief Minister.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday opposed the grant of interim bail in the Supreme Court, saying the right to campaign in elections is neither fundamental nor constitutional.
"It is relevant to note that the right to campaign for an election is neither a fundamental right nor a constitutional right and not even a legal right," the agency said. It added that to its knowledge, "no political leader has been granted interim bail for campaigning even though he is not the contesting candidate. Even a contesting candidate is not granted interim bail if he is in custody for his own campaigning," it said in the affidavit.
However, Kejriwal's legal team has decided to move against the affidavit. Objecting to the affidavit, the CM's legal team issued a press release revealing that a formal complaint in this regard has been lodged with the Supreme Court's registry.
According to them, the ED affidavit as a blatant disregard of legal procedures and the affidavit was submitted without obtaining the SC's approval. It was issued at a time when the matter is already slated for a final decision in the top court on Friday, they alleged.
Meanwhile, the ED is expected to soon file a fresh charge sheet in the Delhi excise policy-linked money laundering case and it may name Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, BRS leader K Kavitha and some others as accused.
