Union govt approves ED prosecution of Kejriwal in excise policy case

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New Delhi: The Union Home Ministry has granted permission to the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) to proceed with prosecuting former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal in connection with alleged irregularities in the scrapped Delhi excise policy of 2021-22, NDTV reported.
This development follows a Supreme Court ruling on November 6, which mandated that the ED, like the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), must obtain prior sanction for prosecuting individuals under section 197(1) of the Criminal Procedure Code (now section 218 of Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita) in money laundering cases. Without this approval, the framing of charges against Kejriwal in the excise policy case had been delayed in a Delhi court.
According to reports, ED intends to seek sanctions for all public servants before filing charge sheets under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). Last month, Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena authorised the ED to prosecute Kejriwal. The CBI had already secured similar sanction in August 2024 for its parallel corruption case related to the excise policy.
Kejriwal, who is out on bail, was arrested by the ED on March 21 under the PMLA. The agency included him in a charge sheet filed on May 17, alleging that Rs 45 crore out of an estimated Rs 100 crore bribe received to favour specific liquor traders was utilised for the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)’s election campaign in Goa. The ED claimed that Kejriwal, as the national convenor and executive member of AAP, played a pivotal role in the generation and usage of these funds, describing him as the mastermind behind AAP's operations.
The agency further alleged that Kejriwal, as one of AAP’s founding members, was instrumental in the policy’s decision-making process. Citing witness statements, the ED accused him of soliciting kickbacks. The agency also claimed to have identified proceeds of crime amounting to Rs 1,100 crore.
The ED stated that he and his former deputy Manish Sisodia and ex-AAP media in-charge Vijay Nair demanded additional kickbacks exceeding Rs 100 crore for election funding. It also alleged that Vinod Chauhan, an associate of Kejriwal, facilitated the transfer of Rs 25.5 crore in bribe money from Delhi to Goa for AAP’s use. Kejriwal has consistently denied all allegations, maintaining his innocence.