New Delhi: The Supreme Court registry declined an urgent listing of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s plea on Wednesday, seeking a seven-day extension of his interim bail for medical tests.
The apex court registry rejected the application, citing that Kejriwal had been granted liberty to approach the trial court for regular bail, rendering the plea non-maintainable.
On Tuesday, a vacation bench comprising Justices JK Maheshwari and KV Viswanathan acknowledged arguments presented by senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, representing the chief minister. They suggested that the Chief Justice of India (CJI) could decide on the interim plea’s listing, given that judgment on the main matter had been reserved.
Kejriwal had filed a plea on May 26, seeking an extension of his interim bail by seven days to undergo various medical tests, including a PET-CT scan. He cited sudden and unexplained weight loss combined with high ketone levels, indicative of potential kidney issues, serious cardiac conditions, or even cancer.
In his latest plea, Kejriwal proposed surrendering to jail authorities on June 9 instead of the initially scheduled date of June 2.
Earlier, on May 10, the Supreme Court had granted a 21-day interim bail to the chief minister in connection with a money laundering case linked to the Delhi government’s now-defunct excise policy ‘scam’. This permission enabled Kejriwal to campaign during the Lok Sabha polls.
The court had stipulated that Kejriwal must surrender on June 2, a day after the conclusion of the final phase of the seven-phase election.
The case pertains to allegations of corruption and money laundering in the formulation and execution of Delhi’s excise policy for 2021-22, which has since been discontinued.
