No bail for Arvind Kejriwal, High Court says trial court didn’t apply its mind
The Delhi High Court on Tuesday again put on hold Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s bail in a money laundering case linked to the now-scrapped liquor policy.
The High Court said the trial court did not give adequate opportunity to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to put forth its arguments on not granting bail to Kejriwal, and that it didn’t apply its mind during its judgment.
Pronouncing the order, a vacation bench of Justice Sudhir Kumar Jain said the ED did not get proper consideration by the trial court judge to present its arguments while opposing the bail plea of Kejriwal.
The bench said the trial court did not lay out the conditions for Kejriwal’s release under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), under which the Chief Minister was charged in the case.
“The trial court should not have given any finding, which is opposite to the finding of the High Court. The documents and arguments were not appreciated properly,” the bench said.
On the interim bail granted to Kejriwal, the High Court said it was done as Kejriwal had to campaign for AAP in the Lok Sabha elections. It stated that the materials presented in front of the trial court judge were not considered properly.