Excise policy case: Arvind Kejriwal skips 7th ED summons, AAP says wait for Delhi court order

Delhi chief minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) convener Arvind Kejriwal on Monday skipped the seventh summons from the Enforcement Directorate (ED), seeking to question him in the money laundering case linked to alleged irregularities in the Delhi excise policy 2021-22. According to AAP, the probe agency should wait for a court order instead of issuing summons repeatedly to Kejriwal.

The ED issued its latest summons to Kejriwal asking him to appear before it on February 26, after he continued to skip interrogation since November 2 last year when he was first asked to depose before the probe agency but did not, alleging the notice was “vague, motivated and unsustainable in law.”

The second summon was issued on December 18, the third one on January 3, the fourth on January 18, the fifth summon was issued on February 2, and the sixth one on February 19. However, the Delhi CM skipped all the summons, terming them as "illegal" and wrote to the ED seeking their withdrawal.

Meanwhile, the probe agency also filed a complaint against Kejriwal for “disobeying” its summons in this case.

Delhi excise policy case

The Delhi government had come up with an excise policy in 2021-22 aiming to revitalise the city's flagging liquor business by replacing the sales-volume-based regime with a license fee for traders, and promised swankier stores, free of the infamous metal grilles, ultimately giving customers a better buying experience. However, the policy was scrapped after Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena sought a CBI probe into the policy alleging irregularities.

According to ED, the Kejriwal-led AAP received kickbacks to the tune of ₹100 crore to finalise the excise policy. It was also alleged that a large chunk of this money was used by the party in its Goa election campaign.

So far, the ED has arrested top AAP leaders - former deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh in the case.