Kejriwal moves HC against excise case summons by ED

AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal challenges a Delhi high court summons in a money laundering case linked to the excise policy, citing flawed procedures.

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief Arvind Kejriwal has moved the Delhi high court challenging a sessions court order that upheld summons issued to him in a money laundering case linked to the now-scrapped Delhi excise policy.

Arvind Kejriwal (X/ArvindKejriwal)

The former chief minister’s plea is likely to be heard by Justice Ravinder Dudeja on Wednesday.

The sessions court on September 17 last year had upheld a magisterial court’s order directing Kejriwal to appear before it on a complaint filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), stating there was sufficient ground to proceed against him.

ED had filed two complaints on February 3 and March 6 under Section 174 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), which penalises non-compliance with a summons issued by a public servant. The section carries a jail term of up to one month and a fine of ₹500.

ED, in its complaint, alleged Kejriwal intentionally avoided appearing before investigators despite multiple summons under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

The agency submitted that he has no legal right to know whether he is being summoned as a witness or an accused in the Delhi liquor excise policy case and blamed him for intentionally omitting to obey ED’s summons and for raising “frivolous” objections.

ED maintained he was being summoned to trace the alleged proceeds of crime and examine his role and that of others involved.

In March last year, additional chief metropolitan magistrate (ACMM) Divya Malhotra took cognisance of ED’s complaints and issued summons to Kejriwal.

On March 16, she granted him bail. Kejriwal later challenged the summons before the sessions court, but the plea was rejected in September.

In his high court petition, Kejriwal has argued that the process leading to the summons was flawed. He contended that the summons were issued by one ED officer, while the complaints were filed by another, making the cognisance and resulting summons legally unsustainable.

Kejriwal was arrested by the ED in March 2024 and granted interim bail by the Supreme Court on July 12.