Supreme Court Dismisses Petition to Remove Kejriwal as Delhi CM, Cites Lack of Legal Basis

The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed a petition calling for the removal of Arvind Kejriwal as Chief Minister of Delhi in light of his arrest in connection with the excise policy case. Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta emphasized that while the matter concerns propriety, there is no legal basis for seeking Kejriwal's removal.

The bench stated, "What is the legal right? Why should we go into all this? On propriety you may certainly have something to say but no legal right. Let the LG take action if he wants to....we are not inclined."

The Supreme Court's ruling comes after the Delhi High Court rejected a similar PIL earlier, imposing a cost of ₹50,000, deeming it a publicity-seeking endeavour. The court emphasized that the petitioner persisted despite previous denials of identical prayers.

The bench added, "We are not inclined to interfere with the impugned judgment. The Special Leave Petition is dismissed." The petitioner, Kant Bhati, was not the petitioner before the Delhi High Court, noted the bench.

Arvind Kejriwal, arrested in the Delhi liquor policy scam case on March 21, received interim bail from the Supreme Court until June 1 for campaigning in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. However, he must surrender on June 2 and is barred from visiting the chief minister's office and the Delhi secretariat as conditions for his bail. The court stated, "Power to grant interim bail is commonly exercised in a number of cases. Interim bail is granted in the facts of each case. This case is not an exception." The decision is a significant boost for the Aam Aadmi Party's campaign, particularly in Punjab and Delhi. Kejriwal's arrest stems from allegations regarding the Delhi liquor policy, which he has challenged.​