Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi

New Delhi, Mar 30: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday approached the Delhi High Court seeking a review of a trial court order that acquitted former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in two cases related to his alleged failure to appear before the agency in connection with the excise policy probe.

The appeal, filed against the January 22 orders, is scheduled to be heard on Wednesday by Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma. In its petition, the ED alleged that Kejriwal deliberately ignored repeated summons and failed to cooperate with the investigation.

According to the agency, Kejriwal raised baseless objections and intentionally avoided appearing before it. The ED also claimed that other accused persons in the case were in contact with him during the formulation of the now-scrapped excise policy, which allegedly granted undue benefits and resulted in kickbacks to the Aam Aadmi Party.

However, the trial court had earlier held that the ED failed to establish that Kejriwal had deliberately disobeyed the summons, leading to his acquittal in the two cases.

Kejriwal is currently on interim bail in a related money laundering case. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court of India has referred questions concerning the necessity of arrest under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) to a larger bench for further examination.

In a separate development, on February 27, the trial court discharged Kejriwal, his former deputy Manish Sisodia, and 21 others in the main liquor policy case, stating that the CBI’s case lacked merit and did not stand up to judicial scrutiny. The CBI’s challenge to that order is currently pending before the Delhi High Court.