Arvind Kejriwal, leader of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and former Chief Minister of Delhi, has filed a petition in the Delhi High Court challenging a trial court’s decision to take cognizance of a chargesheet filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). The chargesheet is linked to a money laundering case arising from alleged irregularities in Delhi’s excise policy.
Kejriwal’s legal move comes amid a series of legal challenges related to the case, including another plea against summons issued to him by the ED. The Delhi High Court is expected to hear his latest petition on Thursday.
In his appeal, Kejriwal contends that the special judge’s acceptance of the chargesheet was flawed because it was done without the necessary sanction for prosecuting a public servant—a status he held at the time the alleged offenses were committed. This procedural oversight, he argues, invalidates the trial court’s order.
The case against Kejriwal stems from changes made to Delhi’s excise policy, which the CBI and ED claim involved modifications that favored certain licensees improperly. These allegations have led to charges of money laundering and corruption, prompting a criminal investigation initiated at the behest of Delhi’s Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena.
The Delhi government had introduced a new excise policy on November 17, 2021, which was subsequently scrapped by the end of September 2022 amid growing corruption allegations.
Previously, the Delhi High Court declined to stay the proceedings at the trial court level, even as it sought responses from the ED on Kejriwal’s challenge to the summons. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court granted Kejriwal interim bail in July, followed by bail in a related CBI case in September.
