Excise policy case: Kejriwal likely to skip fourth summons by ED, to leave for Goa today

The visit is as per a pre-announced schedule, an official in the Chief Minister’s office (CMO) said.

Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal may skip the fourth summons from the Enforcement Directorate, which asked him to appear before it on Thursday, 18 January in connection with its investigation into the money laundering aspects of the Delhi excise policy case, because he is scheduled to leave for Goa for a 3-day visit.

CM Arvind Kejriwal at the departure of a train of pilgrims as part of the Mukhyamantri Teerth Yatra scheme on Wednesday. (AAP - X)

“Arvind Kejriwal is scheduled to leave for Goa on Thursday as per a pre-announced schedule,” an official in the Chief Minister’s office said. This person added that Kejriwal, also the head of the Aam Aadmi Party, will assess the party’s preparedness in the state for the coming Lok Sabha polls.

Responding to a question from reporters during an event on Wednesday, Kejriwal said, “We will act as per law.”

HT reached out to ED, but officials there did not respond to a request for comment.

Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) accused Kejriwal of “evasive behaviour “.

“CM Kejriwal is behaving like a fugitive but the law will soon reach him. The day ED takes cognisance of his evasive behaviour and takes stern action against the CM, then Aam Aadmi Party will start playing victim card,” 0said Delhi BJP spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor.

Kejriwal has skipped three previous summons — on November 2, on December 22, and on January 3 — calling them “illegal and politically motivated”.

ED issued its fourth summons on January 13 — a day after AAP announced Kejriwal’s three-day Goa tour — leading to Delhi AAP convenor Gopal Rai accusing the central agency of issuing the summons in a bid to stop Kejriwal from campaigning.

On November 2 — the date of the first summons — Kejriwal travelled to poll-bound Madhya Pradesh to address a rally, and alleged that ED was acting at the behest of the BJP to malign his image. On December 22, Kejriwal was in Punjab for meditation retreat, and on January 3, Kejriwal did not appear before the agency citing preparations for Republic Day celebrations as well as the then ongoing Rajya Sabha polls for three seats in Delhi.

Kejriwal and his party have repeatedly and consistently objected to the summons saying that it is not clear whether he was asked to appear as a witness or suspect; as chief minister or as AAP chief; and that the agency has not made available any details of its line of questioning. On January 3, Kejriwal claimed that the BJP-led central government wanted to have him arrested before the 2024 elections.

Former Delhi deputy CM Manish Sisodia and AAP Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Singh have been arrested in connection with the Delhi excise policy case and are in judicial custody.

“My lawyers have told me that the ED summons is illegal…The BJP’s purpose is not to question me, but to arrest me so that I cannot campaign in the Lok Sabha polls,” Kejriwal said on January 3.

The Delhi government’s 2021-22 excise policy aimed to revitalise the city’s flagging liquor business. It aimed to replace a sales-volume based regime with a licence fee-based one for traders, and promised swankier stores, free of the infamous metal grilles, ultimately giving customers a better buying experience. The policy also introduced discounts and offers on the purchase of liquor, a first for Delhi.

The plan, however, came to an abrupt end, with lieutenant governor VK Saxena recommending a CBI probe into alleged irregularities in the regime. This ultimately resulted in the policy being scrapped prematurely and being replaced by the 2020-21 regime, with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) alleging that Saxena’s predecessor sabotaged the move with a few last-minute changes that resulted in lower-than-expected revenues.

ED has alleged that the AAP received kickbacks to the tune of ₹100 crore to finalise the excise policy, and that some of this money was used by the party in its Goa elections campaign. The agency has already arrested at least 14 top AAP leaders, in connection with the case, and the central probe agency has approached the court seeking permission to investigate AAP as a beneficiary of the “proceeds of crime”.

AAP, Kejriwal, Sisodia, and Singh have denied all charges, and have called the case a “witch-hunt” and “political vendetta” at the behest of the Union government. The party has also been running a campaign to seek public feedback on whether Kejriwal should step down as chief minister if he is arrested.