Excise policy corruption case: SC grants bail to Arvind Kejriwal
New Delhi (PTI): The Supreme Court on Friday granted bail to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in the corruption case lodged by the CBI in connection with the excise policy 'scam', saying prolonged incarceration amounts to unjust deprivation of liberty.
A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan granted the relief to Kejriwal on furnishing a bail bond of Rs 10 lakh, and two sureties of like amount.
Kejriwal, who was arrested by the ED in the excise policy case on March 21,
was granted interim bail on May 10 for campaigning in the Lok Sabha polls and has been in jail since June 2 when he surrendered.
The top court directed Kejriwal not to make any public comment on the merits of the case and added that terms and conditions as imposed in the ED case would also be applicable here.
The top court, while granting him bail in the ED case, had said that Kejriwal cannot visit his office or the Delhi Secretariat and not sign any official file unless absolutely necessary to obtain the Lieutenant Governor's sanction.
It said completion of trial was unlikely to occur in the immediate future and rejected the apprehension of tampering by Kejriwal.
Justice Bhuyan, who wrote a separate judgement, concurred with Justice Kant on grant of bail.
However, Justice Bhuyan questioned the timing of Kejriwal's arrest by the CBI and said the agency's aim was to frustrate grant of bail to him in the ED case.
I fail to understand the CBI's urgency to arrest Kejriwal on cusp of release in the ED case when it did not do so for 22 months, Justice Bhuyan said.
He said the CBI can't justify arrest and continued detention citing evasive replies by Kejriwal, and added that non-cooperation cannot mean self-incrimination.
"The CBI must dispel notion of being a caged parrot, must show it is an uncaged parrot," Justice Bhuyan said.
It would be travesty of justice to keep Kejriwal in custody when he has got bail in the ED case on the same grounds, he said.
Justice Bhuyan said he has serious reservations on the conditions imposed in the ED case on Kejriwal which bar him from entering the CM's office and signing files.
"I am not commenting on conditions imposed on Kejriwal due to judicial discipline as it was in separate ED case," he added.
The bench had on September 5 reserved its verdict on the pleas.
Kejriwal has filed two separate petitions challenging the denial of bail and against his arrest by the CBI in the corruption case filed by the central agency.
The AAP chief was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on June 26. He has challenged in the apex court the Delhi High Court's August 5 order which upheld his arrest in the corruption case.
On July 12, the apex court had granted interim bail to Kejriwal in the money laundering case.
The top court had referred to a larger bench, preferably of five judges, for in-depth consideration of three questions on the aspect of "need and necessity of arrest" under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
During the arguments on September 5 on Kejriwal's plea in the corruption case, the chief minister had vehemently opposed in the apex court the CBI's contentions that he should have approached the trial court first for bail in the corruption case. Questioning the maintainability of Kejriwal's pleas, Additional Solicitor General S V Raju, appearing for the CBI, had submitted that even in the money laundering case in which he had challenged his arrest by the ED, he was sent back by the apex court to the trial court.
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CM Siddaramaiah alleges ‘criminal conspiracy’ in Sringeri recount, vows legal action
Bengaluru (PTI): Alleging a “criminal conspiracy” by BJP candidate D N Jeevaraj in the Sringeri Assembly poll recounting, Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said the outcome was manipulated after valid postal ballot votes in favour of Congress leader T D Raje Gowda were tampered with during the recounting process.
Following a Karnataka High Court order on an election petition filed by Jeevaraj, challenging Raje Gowda’s election, the reverification and recounting were conducted on Saturday.
After the reverification and recount of postal ballots for the Sringeri Assembly constituency, votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda were reduced by 255, the returning officer said.
A report on the matter has been submitted to the Election Commission of India for further action, the officer added.
Congress leader Raje Gowda had won the 2023 Assembly polls from Sringeri by 201 votes, defeating his nearest rival Jeevaraj.
Addressing a press conference in Bengaluru, Siddaramaiah said the High Court had directed the recounting of postal ballots and that irregularities were noticed during the exercise conducted on May 2.
“This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” Siddaramaiah said, alleging that valid votes cast in favour of Raje Gowda were altered after being accepted by counting agents of all parties, including Congress, BJP, and JD(S).
He claimed that during the recounting of postal ballots, 255 votes were initially accepted as valid by all agents but were later tampered with by subordinate officials.
“There is a second mark on the votes polled in favour of Raje Gowda. They had accepted these as valid votes. Subsequently, another mark was made by officials. This is a clear case of criminal conspiracy,” he said.
When asked who was behind the alleged conspiracy, the CM replied, “It was hatched by Jeevaraj and others. It is planned.”
Siddaramaiah further alleged that the returning officer acted improperly by declaring the result despite the presence of an Election Commission observer during the recounting.
“Immediately after the counting, the returning officer announced the result. He should not have done so; this is against the law,” he said.
He pointed out that Raje Gowda had originally won by 201 votes, but after the recounting, the BJP candidate was declared the winner by 52 votes.
“The BJP has committed a criminal act of conspiracy. This is not vote chori but vote dacoity,” he alleged.
The CM said a police complaint had already been filed by Raje Gowda’s election agent, Sudhir Kumar, and emphasised the need for electoral integrity.
“We want transparency and free and fair elections. That is what our Constitution mandates,” he added.
Stating that the government would pursue legal remedies, Siddaramaiah said, “We are preparing an appeal challenging the returning officer’s announcement in a court of law.”
Responding to a separate query on elections in other states, the CM said there appeared to be an anti-incumbency factor in West Bengal, while results in Tamil Nadu were “surprising,” adding that Vijay’s party was emerging as the largest there.
Following the victory of party candidates in Bagalkote and Davanagere South, Siddaramaiah expressed confidence about future electoral prospects in Karnataka.
“Even in 2028, we will win the Assembly elections. We will come back,” the CM said.
Siddaramaiah added that he would order a forensic examination into the alleged tampering of postal ballots.
