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Delhi News: In a major setback for Arvind Kejriwal, a sessions court in Delhi on Friday refused to stay proceedings against the Delhi Chief Minister in a complaint by filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for skipping summons in an alleged money laundering case linked to the purported Delhi excise policy scam.
Additional Sessions Judge Rakesh Syal of Delhi’s Rouse Avenue Court refused to stay the proceedings against Kejriwal in a magisterial court and directed the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) supremo to approach the metropolitan magistrate for exemption from personal appearance in the matter.
Arvind Kejriwal had moved the sessions court against the order passed by Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Divya Malhotra asking him to personally appear before her on March 16.
The ED has filed two complaints before the magisterial court seeking Kejriwal’s prosecution for skipping multiple summonses issued to him in the case.
The latest complaint pertains to the AAP national convenor not honouring summonses no. 4 to 8 sent by the federal probe agency under Section 50 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), ED had said.
Earlier, the central probe agency had moved the magisterial court seeking Kejriwal’s prosecution for not attending the first three summonses issued to him in the money laundering case linked to the now-scrapped Delhi excise policy.
The court of ACMM Malhotra has listed the matter (regarding summonses no. 1 to 3) for hearing on March 16, along with the other complaint.
Arvind Kejriwal has vehemently denied the allegations against him and his party in the alleged Delhi Excise policy ‘scam’ case.
The defiant AAP chief has skipped eight summonses issued by ED till date.
The AAP has alleged that the BJP was planning to arrest Arvind Kejriwal before the upcoming Lok Sabha elections and the saffron party’s only aim is to “finish” AAP.
Recently, AAP leader Jasmine Shah termed all the summons served to the Delhi CM by the ED as “illegal”.
“It is clear that they (BJP) want to finish Aam Aadmi Party and arrest Arvind Kejriwal before Lok Sabha elections. He is ready to cooperate with the legal process. Till now, all summons served to him are illegal,” Shah had said.
(With PTI inputs)
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