Kejriwal acquittal: Challenge may spark 2G case back into life

CBI's appeal against a trial court's exoneration of 23 in the Delhi excise policy case sets the stage for another high-profile courtroom battle.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)’s decision to move the Delhi high court against a trial court’s order exonerating 23 people, including former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, in connection with the Delhi excise policy is poised to spark another high-profile courtroom battle.

Arvind Kejriwal (ANI)

Another high-profile matter, the 2G spectrum allocation case, had resulted in acquittal in the trial court in 2017, and has been pending before the high court for over eight years.

The 2G spectrum case dates back to 2008, when telecom licences and spectrum were allocated to various companies. Allegations surfaced that the cut-off date for applications was altered to favour certain firms, and the “first-come, first-served” policy was manipulated.

The controversy intensified after the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) in 2010 estimated notional losses of ₹1.76 lakh crore to the exchequer. Then Union telecom minister A Raja resigned in 2010 following the CAG report. He was arrested by CBI in 2011 and spent 15 months in jail before securing bail. CBI later alleged a loss of ₹30,984 crore. In 2012, the Supreme Court scrapped 122 telecom licences granted in the allocation.

But a Delhi special court on December 17, 2017, in its 1552-page verdict, acquitted A Raja, DMK MP K Kanimozhi, and others accused in the CBI and ED cases, ruling that the prosecution “miserably failed to prove any charge against any of the accused, made in its well-choreographed charge sheet”.

On March 19, 2018, ED approached the Delhi high court challenging the 2017 order and claiming that this was a “classic case” of money laundering and that the special CBI judge had “wrongly interpreted” the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002.

A day later, CBI, too, challenged the ruling, arguing that the lower court order could have a major impact on corruption cases in the country.

On March 22, 2024, the high court admitted CBI’s appeal, saying that the probe agency had built a prima facie case which required deeper examination.

In its 120-page judgment, the court observed that the 2G case was not an ordinary criminal matter and noted that the prosecution was initiated pursuant to directions from the Supreme Court, which had monitored the investigation. Justice Dinesh Kumar Sharma, in his ruling, further stated that while considering CBI’s plea seeking leave to appeal, the high court had identified certain contradictions in the trial court’s judgment that warranted “deeper examination.”

However, ED’s plea seeking the court’s leave, filed in 2018, remains pending and has yet to be admitted.

Since March 2024, CBI’s appeal has been listed 13 times. Court records indicate that during this period, the matter was placed before six different benches of the high court. But arguments are yet to commence.

It was initially listed in May 2024 before justice Swarana Kanta Sharma, who scheduled it for consideration on July 18. On that date, however, the matter came up before justice Neena Bansal Krishna. With the consent of the parties, the appeal was directed to be listed every Friday at 2:15pm.

When the case was taken up on August 30, counsel for CBI informed the court that the registry had not yet prepared the paper book, pointing out that more than 18 trunks of documents had to be scanned, which would take time. The court accordingly directed the parties to assist the registry in preparing the paper book within 15 days.

Subsequently, due to a roster change, the matter was listed before justice Manoj Kumar Ohri, who recused himself on September 26. The case was then placed before justice Chandra Dhari Singh and was listed three times before him. On November 12, 2024, he directed the parties to ensure that the paper book was prepared before the next hearing date, December 16, 2024. However, on December 16, the matter was adjourned to February 14, 2025.

On February 14, 2025, the case came up before justice Vikas Mahajan, who directed the high court registry to provide digitised copies of the complete paper book to all parties involved in the appeal. Thereafter, the matter was listed four times before justice Ravinder Dudeja, but arguments could not commence.

The CBI’s appeal, along with ED’s appeals, was listed on February 12, 2026, before justice Swarana Kanta Sharma. However, on that day, the matter was adjourned to May 19.

This underscores how politically sensitive corruption cases that result in acquittal in lower courts can remain stalled for years on procedural matters before substantive hearings begin.