In a setback, the Delhi High Court refuses to grant any interim protection from coercive action to Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal and said at this stage we are not inclined to grant an interim relief. However, the court sought a response from ED on this fresh interim plea and listed the matter for April 22, 2024.
Kejriwal has moved the court in the wake of the latest summons, the ninth issued by the ED, asking him to appear before it on Thursday. 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, representing the petitioner in the matter, 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 case pertains to alleged 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.
