It is the recent Supreme Court ruling. Shying away from getting into the political debate over the interim bail given to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for contesting in the Lok Sabha elections, the Supreme Court ruled, but insisted that there was nothing wrong in a critical analysis of its judgment.
A bench comprising Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta declined to entertain arguments from both the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Kejriwal's legal representatives regarding statements concerning the interim bail provided to the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader.
"We have not made any exception for anybody. We said in our order what we felt was justified," asserted the bench.
During the proceedings, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the ED, raised objections to Kejriwal's campaign speeches, where he suggested that if people voted for AAP, he would not face imprisonment on June 2.
"It's merely his assumption; we cannot comment on that," remarked the bench.
The court reiterated that its order clearly stipulates the date for Kejriwal's surrender, emphasizing the rule of law.
Mehta alleged that Kejriwal's remarks violated the bail conditions, describing them as derogatory to the institution. However, the bench made it clear that their order did not restrain Kejriwal from speaking on the case.
Meanwhile, senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, for Kejriwal, referred to an interview where it was said that the court was giving Kejriwal "special treatment." But the bench declined to get into that.
The court was also told by Singhvi that Kejriwal had never said that he would go back to jail if people didn't vote for his party and Singhvi was ready to file an affidavit to that effect.
The Supreme Court was hearing the plea by Kejriwal against his custodial remand by the Enforcement Directorate in a money laundering case related to an alleged excise scam. The court had earlier granted him interim bail till June 1, the last day of the Lok Sabha elections, but directed him to surrender on June 2.
While allowing Kejriwal's bail, the court restrained him from going to his office or the Delhi secretariat and from signing official documents except in absolute necessity after obtaining the lieutenant governor's approval for the same. The case relates to alleged corruption and money laundering in the formulation and implementation of the Delhi government's excise policy for 2021-22.
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