The Supreme Court will hear a petition Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s petition challenging his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) today. The top court will hear the plea challenging the high court upholding his arrest in a money laundering case linked to the alleged excise policy scam.
Mr Kejriwal was arrested by the ED on March 21, hours after the high court refused to grant him protection from coercive action. He is currently lodged in Tihar Jail and his judicial custody ends today.
The Delhi High Court had denied relief to Mr Kejriwal on Tuesday following which he approached the Supreme Court for relief. But he could not get an urgent hearing as the court was closed for Eid and the weekend. The Supreme Court is expected to take up the case for hearing shortly.
Mr Kejriwal has said that his arrest constitutes an “unprecedented assault on the tenets of democracy” based on “free and fair elections” and “federalism”.