Today(on 25th July),The Rouse Avenue Court has set a deadline of July 31 for the ED to provide hard copies of up to the 8th supplementary charge sheets to the accused. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Manish Sisodia, and K Kavitha appeared via video conferencing, while AAP MP Sanjay Singh was exempted due to Parliament duties.
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DELHI: Today(on 25th July), the Rouse Avenue Court set a deadline for the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) to deliver hard copies of the up to 8th supplementary charge sheets to the accused by July 31.
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, former Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, and BRS leader K Kavitha were presented via video conferencing from Tihar Jail. The court mandated that the jail authorities produce the accused through video conferencing on July 31. Notably, AAP MP Sanjay Singh was exempted from the hearing due to his attendance in the Parliament session.
Meanwhile, the court extended the judicial custody of CM Arvind Kejriwal in the CBI case until August 8. Kejriwal, who is implicated in the Delhi Excise policy case, was also produced virtually from Tihar Jail. Special Judge Kaveri Baweja instructed the ED to provide hard copies of the supplementary charge sheets to the accused and scheduled the next hearing for July 31.
Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) NK Matta, representing the ED, requested additional time to supply the hard copies of the supplementary charge sheets.
He assured the court that –
“the soft copies will be provided today.”
Arvind Kejriwal was granted interim bail by the Supreme Court on July 12, following his regular bail by the trial court on June 20. Despite this, he remains in judicial custody in connection with a CBI case related to the Delhi Excise policy. On July 12, the court directed the ED to furnish a copy of the supplementary charge sheet to the counsel of Kejriwal and the other accused.
National Secretary Pankaj Gupta represented the Aam Aadmi Party before the court. On a previous occasion, another accused, Ashish Mathur, was granted bail on a bond of Rs 1 lakh after being charge-sheeted without arrest by the ED.
The court took cognizance of the supplementary charge sheet filed against Arvind Kejriwal and the Aam Aadmi Party on July 9. Additionally, the court acknowledged the supplementary charge sheet filed against Vinod Chauhan and Ashish Mathur, issuing production warrants for Arvind Kejriwal, Vinod Chauhan, and the Aam Aadmi Party. Summons through the Investigating Officer (IO) were issued to Ashish Mathur.
The ED filed a supplementary prosecution complaint (charge sheet) against Arvind Kejriwal and the Aam Aadmi Party on May 17, leading to Kejriwal’s arrest on March 21. Another supplementary prosecution complaint was filed against Vinod Chauhan and Ashish Mathur on July 1.
Additional Solicitor General (ASG) SV Raju opposed the bail plea of Arvind Kejriwal by presenting evidence suggesting that Kejriwal demanded a bribe of Rs 100 crores, purportedly funneled into the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) for their Goa election campaign.
ASG Raju asserted-
“Evidence indicates that Kejriwal solicited a bribe of Rs 100 crores, which was purportedly allocated to the AAP for its Goa election campaign.”
Moreover, ASG Raju argued that a substantial sum of Rs 45 crores was transferred by Vinod Chauhan to Chanpreet Singh through hawala channels. Chanpreet Singh was allegedly responsible for overseeing AAP’s election activities in Goa.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED), while seeking Kejriwal’s remand, presented the arrestee with evidence of hawala transfers amounting to approximately Rs 45 crore. This evidence was substantiated with call detail record (CDR) locations, call records, and data seized from an IT raid on a hawala firm in Goa.
The ED submitted-
“The arrestee (Kejriwal) was presented with evidence of Hawala transactions amounting to approximately Rs 45 crore, supported by CDR locations, call records, IT-seized data from a Hawala firm in Goa, proof of partial cash and bill payments, and WhatsApp communications detailing this arrangement.”
Additionally, Kejriwal was presented with multiple witness statements from individuals who worked on the AAP campaign in Goa and received cash from Chanpreet Singh. These witnesses corroborated the claims of illegal financial transactions.
Opposing the bail application, ASG SV Raju reiterated the claim that bribe money was routed to Goa’s election campaign through hawala transactions. He stated-
“Bribe money intended for the Goa election was transferred via Hawala transactions, and Arvind Kejriwal was in contact with Angadiya (Hawala dealers).”
The bribe money, according to ASG Raju, was sent by Vinod Chauhan and received by Chanpreet Singh Rayat, who was managing AAP’s election efforts in Goa.
ASG Raju further referred to the statement of Sagar Patel, which implicated three individuals, including Chanpreet Singh, as recipients of the cash.
He mentioned-
“Vinod Chauhan instructed the payment of funds to Chanpreet in Goa and other recipients.”
Additionally, a photo of the note matching the one used for the hawala transaction was found on Vinod Chauhan’s phone.
READ ALSO: Delhi High Court to Hear Arvind Kejriwal’s Bail Plea in Excise Policy Scam on July 5
In his submission, ASG Raju pointed out that Kejriwal was in contact with Vinod Chauhan through chats, demonstrating their close connection.
He emphasized-
“Arvind Kejriwal communicated with Vinod Chauhan via chats, and Kejriwal’s acknowledgment of these chats indicates a close association with Chauhan.”
Furthermore, he noted that Rs 1 crore had been recovered from Vinod Chauhan, reinforcing the allegations.
ASG Raju argued that Section 70 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) directly applies to Kejriwal, as he is in charge of AAP, which he described as a company in terms of this section.
He stated-
“Section 70 of the PMLA directly applies to Kejriwal, as he oversees AAP, which is considered a company under this section. Additionally, Kejriwal, as the national convenor of AAP, is responsible for the party’s affairs.”
