"CBI must dispel notion it's a caged parrot," says Supreme Court while granting bail to the Delhi Chief Minister.
GUWAHATI: The Supreme Court on Friday, September 13 granted bail to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in connection with the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) case in the Delhi liquor policy case.
The Court pronounced the verdict in the petitions filed by Kejriwal challenging his arrest and seeking bail in the case registered by the CBI over the alleged Delhi liquor policy scam.
A bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan had heard the matter and reserved verdict on September 5. Both the judges delivered separate judgments, according to a Live Law report.
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Justice Kant held that the arrest of Kejriwal was legal and did not suffer from any procedural irregularity. There is no merit in the contention that the CBI failed to comply with the mandate of Section 41 of the Code of Criminal Procedure while arresting him, Justice Kant held.
At the same time, both the judges were unanimous in the decision to grant bail to Kejriwal considering the fact that the chargesheet has been filed in the case and that the trial is unlikely to be completed in the near future. The same conditions imposed by the coordinate bench while granting interim bail in the ED case will apply in this case too. This would mean that Kejriwal cannot visit the office of the Chief Minister and Delhi Secretariat and cnonot sign official files unless it is required and necessary for obtaining clearance/approval of the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi.
While Justice Kant upheld the arrest, Justice Bhuyan had a differing view regarding the need and necessity to arrest Kejriwal. Justice Bhuyan held that the arrest by the CBI was only to frustrate the bail granted to Kejriwal in the money laundering case.
Justice Bhuyan noted that the CBI did not arrest Kejriwal for 22 months and arrested Kejriwal on the cusp of his release in the ED case. "It appears only after the Trial Court granted regular bail to the appellant in the ED case, that CBI became active and sought custody. It didn't feel the need to arrest for over 22 months. Such action raises serious questions on the arrest itself....I fail to understand the great urgency on part of CBI to arrest appellant when he was on cusp of release in ED cas...Belated arrest of appellant unjustified," Justice Bhuyan said.
When Kejriwal has got bail in the money laundering case despite the stringent conditions under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), his further detention in the predicate offence (CBI Case under the Prevention of Corruption Act) has become untenable. It is a ravesty of justice to keep the appellant in custody on these grounds, especially as he has been granted bail in a more stringent PMLA case, Justice Bhuyan observed.
Justice Bhuyan also expressed reservations about the bail condition that Kejriwal should not visit the CM's office or the Secretariat. However, he chose not to pass any direction in that regard having regard to judicial discipline and reverence for a direction passed by a coordinate bench.
Justice Bhuyan also reminded the CBI of its duty to ensure that its investigations are fair. "CBI is a premier investigating agency. It's in public interest that CBI must not only be above board but must also be seen to be so. Every effort must be made to remove any perception that investigation is not carried out fairly and that the arrest was made in a high-handed and biased manner. In a functional democracy governed by the rule of law, perception matters. Like Caeser's wife, an investigating agency must be above board.
Not so long ago this Court had castigated the CBI comparing it to a caged parrot. It is imperative that the CBI dispels the notion of being a caged parrot, rather the perception should be that of an uncaged parrot," Justice Bhuyan said.
Kejriwal's present petition challenged the Delhi High Court order of August 5, whereby his plea against CBI arrest was dismissed by a Single Judge bench with liberty to approach the trial Court for bail. He had also filed another special leave petition challenging the High Court's refusal to consider his bail plea.
The AAP chief was formally arrested by CBI on June 26, 2024, while he was in custody of the Enforcement Directorate in the money laundering case arising out of the alleged liquor policy scam.
Weeks later, on July 12, the Supreme Court granted Kejriwal interim bail in the money laundering case, while referring his petition challenging ED arrest to a larger bench. However, he continued to remain in custody (which commenced on March 21) due to his arrest by the CBI.
It is apposite to mention that other co-accused in the liquor policy case, viz. Manish Sisodia, K Kavitha, Vijay Nair and Sanjay Singh were granted bail by the Supreme Court this year. The Delhi High Court also recently granted bail to Sameer Mahendru, Chanpreet Singh and Arun Pillai.