‘It’s poll season… 21 days shouldn’t make any difference’: SC top quotes on Arvind Kejriwal bail

Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal was arrested on March 21 by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with the excise policy case.

A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta said Kejriwal will have to surrender and go back to jail on June 2. (Express file photo)

In a major relief to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, the Supreme Court Friday granted him interim bail till June 1 to campaign in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections.

A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta said Kejriwal will have to surrender and go back to jail on June 2. He was arrested on March 21 by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with the excise policy case. June 1 is the last day of the seven-phase elections. The votes will be counted on June 4.

The Supreme Court, however, set a few conditions for Kejriwal — Firstly, he shall furnish bail bonds in the sum of Rs. 50,000 with one surety of the like amount to the satisfaction of the Jail Superintend. Secondly, he shall not visit the CM office and the Delhi Secretariat. Thirdly, he will not make any comment on his role in the case, and lastly, Kejriwal will not interact with witnesses or have access to any official files connected with case.

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Here are the top quotes from the Supreme Court hearing:

📌“Twenty-one days… should not make any difference,” Justice Khanna noted, saying that said the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) case was registered in August 2022 while the chief minister was arrested on March 21 this year.

📌”He (Kejriwal) was out there for one-and-a-half-years. He could have been arrested earlier or after but nothing such thing happened,” the bench told ED.

📌“It is the election season. He is the elected chief minister of Delhi. The elections are around the corner. These are extraordinary situations. It’s not normal… He is not otherwise a habitual (offender) or somebody who has been involved in any other case,” the bench said in response to Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, who questioned the “example” being set. “To release him on interim bail because he is a politician would send a very wrong message,” Mehta added.

Earlier on Tuesday, the ED had opposed the suggestion for interim relief and urged the bench not to carve out a separate class for politicians just because they want to campaign for elections.

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📌“No no, we will try and conclude the arguments next week and try and pronounce the judgement if possible,” the court observed refusing any further extension. The bench said arguments on Kejriwal’s plea against the arrest will continue next week and it will try to pronounce the judgement on the petition before the summer vacations starting May 20.

The law officers also urged the court to impose bail conditions, including that Kejriwal will not say anything regarding the excise policy case.

— With PTI inputs

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