New Delhi, June 25 (UNI) The Delhi High Court on Tuesday stayed the trial court order granting bail to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in a liquor policy case.
Noting that observations of the trial court were totally unjustified and there were many lapses in its decision, a vacation bench of Justice Sudhir Kumar Jain stayed the June 20 order granting bail to the AAP leader.
The HC posted the matter for further hearing by a regular bench after the vacation that end on June 30.
On Wednesday, the Supreme Court is likely to take up Kejriwal’s plea, which he had filed earlier, challenging the High Court’s June 21 decision to reserve its decision on his bail order.
Justice Jain had reserved his verdict on June 21 on a plea by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) seeking a stay on the June 20 trial court order.
The High Court while passing its judgment on Tuesday said that Delhi’s Rouse Avenue Court “didn’t apply its mind” when granting bail.
Pointing out lapses in the trial court’s bail order, the HC said the court did not give the prosecution enough time to argue the application and failed to properly discuss conditions for release in the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, under which Kejriwal was charged, the High Court ruled.
Kejriwal was arrested on March 21 in a corruption case related to the Delhi liquor policy.
He was granted interim bail by the Supreme Court in May to campaign for Lok Sabha elections. He returned to jail on June 2.
Kejriwal then applied for regular bail in the Rouse Avenue Court and a Special Judge granted bail on June 20 which was challenged by the ED the very next day in the High Court.
The High Court after hearing both the parties reserved its judgment on June 21 and delivered its final decision on Tuesday.
