Supreme Court adjourns Arvind Kejriwal's plea challenging HC's stay on bail order

The Supreme Court on Monday adjourned Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's petition challenging the High Court's stay on the Trial Court's bail order till June 26. The apex court noted that it will await the Delhi High Court’s decision on the stay application.

"In stay matters, judgments are not reserved but passed on the spot. What has happened here is unusual," noted the apex court. According to the Supreme Court bench of Justices Manoj Misra and SVN Bhatti, the decision in stay matters is typically immediate rather than reserved. They emphasized their intention to avoid the same mistake, scheduling the next hearing for June 26, expecting clarity from the High Court by then.

Arvind Kejriwal was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on March 21, in connection with a case pertaining to the now-defunct Delhi excise policy case. The ED has alleged that the excise policy was framed in a way that gave kickbacks to the AAP and the proceeds from these activities were used to fund AAP's electoral campaigns in Goa, holding Kejriwal personally and vicariously liable for money laundering. Kejriwal has vehemently denied these allegations, accusing the ED of engaging in extortion tactics.

The trial court initially granted bail to Kejriwal on June 20, citing a lack of direct evidence linking him to the alleged proceeds and criticizing the ED's bias. However, the High Court subsequently imposed an interim stay on his bail pending a final decision, prompting Kejriwal to approach the Supreme Court.