NEW DELHI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) informed the Delhi High Court on Thursday that it has obtained the necessary government sanction under Section 197 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) to prosecute former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in a money laundering case linked to alleged corruption in implementing the 2021-22 Delhi Excise Policy.
Solicitor General (SG) Tushar Mehta presented this information to Justice Manoj Kumar Ohri during a hearing on Kejriwal’s plea against a trial court’s decision to take cognizance of a supplementary prosecution complaint naming him as an accused.
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Section 197 of the CrPC requires prior government approval before prosecuting officials for acts performed in the course of their duties. While Mehta assured the court that the sanction would be formally submitted, Senior Advocate N Hariharan, representing Kejriwal, argued that no such approval had been presented to the trial court.
Hariharan referenced a recent Supreme Court ruling in Enforcement Directorate v. Bibhu Prasad Acharya, highlighting that the trial court could not legally take cognizance without the requisite sanction. Justice Ohri granted the ED time to file an affidavit, scheduling the matter for a detailed hearing on December 20.
Initially, the case was deferred to February 2025, but Kejriwal’s counsel requested an earlier hearing date, citing the lack of prosecution sanction. Despite objections, the court rescheduled the next hearing to December 20.
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Tensions flared when SG Mehta accused the defence of issuing a “threat” to escalate the matter to the Supreme Court. Hariharan refuted this claim, asserting that their submissions were based on procedural correctness.
The case revolves around alleged irregularities in the now-scrapped Delhi Excise Policy, where AAP leaders, including Kejriwal, are accused of facilitating policy loopholes in exchange for kickbacks from liquor companies. Investigators allege that these funds were diverted to AAP’s Goa election campaign.
Kejriwal, arrested by the ED in March, was later granted interim bail by the Supreme Court but returned to custody in June. After securing bail in September, Kejriwal stepped down as Delhi’s Chief Minister.
The upcoming hearing on December 20 is expected to significantly influence the trajectory of the case