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TMI Blog2024 (4) TMI 535X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e material regarding laundering of the kickbacks on Goa Elections and the money being already spent for the said purpose in the year 2022 itself, the recovery in the year 2024 or non-recovery of any remaining amount will become clear only once prosecution complaint is filed. The Courts in all criminal cases wait for the chargesheet/prosecution complaints to be filed and the entire evidence being placed before it against an accused before giving a finding on a prima-facie case for the purpose of cognizance, charge or final acquittal at the appropriate stages of trial and not when the investigation against an accused has begun and chargesheet/prosecution complaint is yet to be filed. A different criteria cannot be adopted in the present case for the said purpose. The material which has been encapsulated here reveals that Sh. Arvind Kejriwal had allegedly conspired with other persons and was involved in the formulation of Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22, in the process of demanding kickbacks from the South Group, as well as in generation, use and concealment of proceeds of crime. He is allegedly involved in the offence of money laundering in two capacities. Firstly, in his personal capaci ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... dmi Party in utilisation of proceeds of crime during Goa Elections 2022, reflecting the reasons to believe that the petitioner was guilty of offence of money laundering in terms of Section 19 of PMLA, and the need to interrogate the petitioner and confront him with the statements of witnesses, and other material as well as digital evidence, coupled with the conduct of petitioner of not joining investigation pursuant to service of nine summons for a period of six months, necessitated the arrest of petitioner Sh. Arvind Kejriwal. Therefore, prima facie, the mandatory provisions of Section 19 of PMLA have been satisfied by the Directorate of Enforcement while arresting the petitioner Sh. Kejriwal, in compliance of judgment of Pankaj Bansal, and there is material at this stage which points out towards the guilt of the petitioner for commission of offence of money laundering. WHETHER THE REMAND ORDER DATED 22.03.2024 HAS BEEN PASSED IN MECHANICAL AND ROUTINE MANNER? - HELD THAT:- This Court observes that the contention regarding remand order having been passed in mechanical and routine manner is without any merit, considering the observations made by the learned Special Court including ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Court to reach a conclusion that the timing of arrest was deliberate by the Directorate of Enforcement, and that conduct of Sh. Kejriwal was not responsible for a situation in which there was no other option other than to arrest to make him join the investigation. This Court holds that the issue of arrest has to be adjudicated as to whether it was illegal or not within the parameters of law, by application of law and not by political rhetoric. Was there any Necessity to Arrest the Petitioner? - HELD THAT:- The observations of the Hon ble Apex Court in case of Vijay Madanlal Choudhary [ 2022 (7) TMI 1316 - SUPREME COURT] were reiterated in case of V. Senthil Balaji [ 2023 (8) TMI 410 - SUPREME COURT] , and Pankaj Bansal and it was observed that it is necessary for the officer concerned to record reasons for his belief that a person is guilty of an offence under PMLA and needs to be arrested. The conduct of the petitioner Sh. Kejriwal of not joining investigation left little option with the Directorate of Enforcement other than his arrest for the purpose of investigation of a pending case, in which other co-accused are in judicial custody, and the investigating agency is also running ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... or ED, Mr. Annam Venkatesh, Mr. Arkaj Kumar, Mr. Vivek Gurnani, Mr. Hitarth Raja, Ms. Abhipriya Rai, Mr. Kartik Sabharwal, Mr. Vivek Gaurav, Mr. Agrimaa Singh, Mr. Kanishk Maurya and Mr. Ritumbhara Garg, Advocates for ED along with Ms. Bhanupriya Meena, DD, Mr. Gaurav Saini, ALA and Mr. S.K. Sharma, IO for ED. JUDGMENT SWARANA KANTA SHARMA, J. EXORDIUM 1. On 21.03.2024, a search was conducted by the Directorate of Enforcement at the official residence of Sh. Arvind Kejriwal, petitioner herein, who is the Chief Minister of the State of Delhi. After the search, he was served with grounds of arrest and was arrested on the same day at 09:05 PM by the Directorate of Enforcement in connection with ECIR No. HIU-II/14/2022 regarding his involvement in the offence of money laundering with regard to Delhi Excise Policy 2021-2022. After arrest, petitioner was produced before the learned Special Judge (PC Act) CBI-09 (MP/MLA Cases), Rouse Avenue Courts, Delhi ('learned Special Court'), where the Directorate of Enforcement had sought his custody for the purpose of interrogation which was granted vide order dated 22.03.2024. 2. During the hearing of the present case, this Court was informed ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... arities committed in framing and implementation of excise policy of GNCTD for the year 2021-2022. The CBI had filed a chargesheet dated 25.11.2022, cognizance of which was taken by the learned Special Court on 15.12.2022. Thereafter, on 25.04.2023 and 08.07.2023, two supplementary chargesheets had also been filed before the learned Special Court respectively, against a total of 16 accused persons. It is the case of CBI that while the excise policy of GNCTD was at the stage of formulation or drafting, the accused persons had hatched a criminal conspiracy, in furtherance of which some loopholes had intentionally been left or created in the policy, which were meant to be utilised or exploited later on. Further, huge amount of money was paid as kickbacks in advance to the public servants involved in commission of the alleged offences and in exchange of undue pecuniary benefits to the conspirators involved in the liquor trade. As alleged, kickbacks of around Rs. 20-30 crores in advance were paid to accused Sh. Vijay Nair, Sh. Manish Sisodia and some other persons belonging to the ruling political party in Delhi, and the other public servants involved in conspiracy by some persons in the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... lhi, straightaway affects 'the level playing field' in the upcoming Lok Sabha Elections 2024. Sh. Singhvi further contends that level playing field is just not a phrase of words but rather it has three vital components. Firstly, it is part of 'free and fair elections', secondly 'elections' are part of 'democracy' and thirdly 'democracy' in turn is a part of 'basic structure' of the Constitution of India. Thus, the timing of the arrest of the petitioner directly hampers the level playing field of free and fair elections to be conducted throughout the nation as the petitioner is a member of the leading opposition party i.e., the Aam Aadmi Party and his arrest directly violates his right to campaign in the upcoming Lok Sabha Elections. Further, the timing of the arrest ensures that Sh. Kejriwal is unable to participate in democratic activities and the effort is to try and disintegrate his Party before even the first vote is cast. Sh. Singhvi argues that the same is pretty evident from the fact that the first summons issued against Sh. Kejriwal by the Directorate of Enforcement was in October, 2023 and he was arrested on 21.03.2024 which reeks of mala fide and it directly damages the b ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of Enforcement has sent summons so many times, is no answer to saying that the Directorate of Enforcement has material to arrest Sh. Kejriwal. Further reliance has been placed on Pankaj Bansal v. Union of India 2023 SCC OnLine SC 1244, wherein the test of arrest has been kept at a higher pedestal as the investigating agency has to satisfy the threshold of 'necessity to arrest' under Section 19 of PMLA, which has not been met in the present case. Apart from the fact that the necessity to arrest is occasioned by ulterior motives, the only object is to humiliate, insult Sh. Kejriwal and to disable him from campaigning in the present case, as argued by Sh. Singhvi. Moreover, it is submitted that the replies given to the summons of the Directorate of Enforcement were very detailed. It is further argued that in the facts and circumstances of the present case, Sh. Kejriwal cannot be said to be a flight risk and there can be no material that can be tampered with by Sh. Kejriwal after one and half years, after the case was actually registered. 12. Sh. Singhvi, learned Senior Counsel for the petitioner further argues that the application of remand of the Directorate of Enforcement itself sa ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... he PMLA, he had made vague and blatant statements implicating Sh. Kejriwal. It is further argued that another astonishing fact which has been recently revealed is that Sh. Sarath Reddy has donated to the Ruling Party at Center via Electoral Bonds which is also an alarming concern. Further, Sh. Sarath Reddy was coerced to give a statement contrary to his earlier statements and thus by doing so, he had secured no objection of the Directorate of Enforcement for his grant of bail on medical reasons, which was just a back pain, on 08.05.2022. It is this argued that the barter of liberty for statement under Section 50 of PMLA is writ large on the very face of it and is a very alarming concern. Similarly, statement of co-accused Buchi Babu is completely hearsay without any material or evidence. Moreover, hearsay evidence cannot be relevant evidence as per Kalyan Kumar Gogoi v. Ashutosh Agnihotri (2011) 2 SCC 532. It is argued that as regards the statement of one Sh. C. Arvind, he in no manner has alleged anything against the petitioner with respect to his role in proceeds of crime. It is also vehemently argued that the Directorate of Enforcement has used a selective approach in relying up ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... said allegation also does not relate to the Directorate of Enforcement's investigation and goes beyond the remit of them investigating it. 16. Sh. Singhvi, learned Senior Counsel further argues that Petitioner cannot be held vicariously liable for a specific offence under Section 3 of PMLA by virtue of Section 70 of PMLA, which only relates to companies. It is further argued that Aam Aadmi Party which is a political party under Section 2(f) of Representation of Peoples Act, 1951 cannot be held to be a company as the Directorate of Enforcement alleges on grounds of arrest. Further, there is no specific role or act under Section 3 of PMLA establishing that the petitioner is liable vicariously. 17. Thus, it is argued that the present writ petition deserves to be allowed. Therefore, the arrest of the petitioner be declared illegal, arbitrary, non-est and the consequent remand order dated 22.03.2024 be set aside and the petitioner be released. SUBMISSIONS ON BEHALF OF THE DIRECTORATE OF ENFORCEMENT 18. Sh. S.V. Raju, learned Additional Solicitor General ('ASG') appearing on behalf of the Directorate of Enforcement has raised certain preliminary objections in relation to the writ pe ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... neem Rizwan Siddiquee (2018) 9 SCC 745. 20. Sh. S.V. Raju further contends the fact that the offence of money laundering has taken place is beyond any doubt as the learned Special Court has taken cognizance in all five prosecution complaints and in those cognizance orders there are categorical findings that an offence of money laundering has prima-facie been committed. 21. Sh. S.V. Raju, learned ASG further argues that all the procedural requirements of Section 19(1) and 19(2) of PMLA as well as Article 22(1) and (2) of the Constitution of India have been complied with by the Directorate of Enforcement. It is argued that the petitioner was arrested on 21.03.2024 at 09:05 PM, and the grounds for his arrest were informed and furnished to him in writing. Moreover, the written grounds of arrest running into 28 pages were served upon the petitioner at 9:05 PM, and the receipt of the same was duly acknowledged by the petitioner in writing. It is further stated that the intimation of arrest was also given to the wife of the petitioner and his lawyers. It is submitted that the arrest of the present petitioner was made following all procedures prescribed under the law in the presence of t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 25.04.2023 recorded under Section 50 of PMLA. It is argued that the petitioner was actively involved in the use of proceeds of crime which was generated through the formulation of the Excise Policy, in the Goa Election campaign of the Aam Aadmi Party of which the present petitioner is the Convenor and the ultimate decision maker. 23. Sh. S.V. Raju, also argues that as per investigation conducted so far, the proceeds of crime of about approximately Rs. 45 Crores which were part of the amount received from the South Group were used in the election campaign of Aam Aadmi Party in Goa in the year 2021-22. This is supported by statements of various persons engaged in the election campaign activities of Aam Aadmi Party in Goa, and have revealed that cash payments were made to them for their work done as Survey workers, Area managers, Assembly managers etc. These persons have also revealed that these payments were made to them in cash, and were managed by one Sh. Chanpreet. These persons and activities related to the election campaign were overall managed by Sh. Vijay Nair and Sh. Durgesh Pathak, Aam Aadmi Party, MLA in Delhi. This shows the utilisation of proceeds of crime. This is also ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of People Act, 1951. As under Section 29-A of the Act, only an association or body of individual citizens of India can make an application for registration as a political party and since APP is an association of such individuals it got itself registered under the RP Act. It is stated that the petitioner is liable to be prosecuted under Section 70 PMLA also as he is the National Convenor of Aam Aadmi Party and a member of Political Affairs Committee & National Executive, so the petitioner is ultimately responsible for the funds being used in the election expenses including their generation. As the petitioner not only was the brain behind Aam Aadmi Party but also controls its major activities, he is also involved in demands of kickbacks which have inter-alia generated proceeds of crime. He further argues that the Directorate of Enforcement has recorded statements under Section 50 PMLA of members of the Aam Aadmi Party who very categorically stated that the petitioner herein is the National Convenor and is overall incharge of the party. 27. Sh. S.V. Raju lastly submits that the investigation qua the petitioner herein is at a very nascent stage and that there are certain statements r ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... fortified by the explanation added to Section 45 of PMLA, which provides as under: "45. Offences to be cognizable and non-bailable. *** Explanation. -- For the removal of doubts, it is clarified that the expression "Offences to be cognizable and non-bailable" shall mean and shall be deemed to have always meant that all offences under this Act shall be cognizable offences and non-bailable offences notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 (2 of 1974), and accordingly the officers authorised under this Act are empowered to arrest an accused without warrant, subject to the fulfilment of conditions under section 19 and subject to the conditions enshrined under this section." (Emphasis supplied) iii. Judicial Precedents Qua Exercise of Power Under Section 19 of PMLA 33. The Hon'ble Apex Court, while dealing with constitutional validity of certain provisions of PMLA and the procedure followed by Directorate of Enforcement, in case of Vijay Madanlal Choudhary v. Union of India 2022 SCC OnLine SC 929, had made the following observations: "322. Section 19 of the 2002 Act postulates the manner in which arrest of person in ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... llowing observations on the scope of Section 19 of PMLA: "14. …In Vijay Madanlal Choudhary (supra), ……It was noted that Section 19 of the Act of 2002 prescribes the manner in which the arrest of a person involved in money laundering can be effected. It was observed that such power was vested in high-ranking officials and that apart, Section 19 of the Act of 2002 provided inbuilt safeguards to be adhered to by the authorized officers, such as, of recording reasons for the belief regarding involvement of the person in the offence of money laundering and, further, such reasons have to be recorded in writing and while effecting arrest, the grounds of arrest are to be informed to that person…" JURISPRUDENCE OF REMAND UNDER CRIMINAL LAW 36. Since the present petition also seeks setting aside of remand order dated 22.03.2024 on the ground that the same was passed by the learned Special Court in a patently mechanical and routine manner, it will be relevant to take note of the legislative framework and judicial precedents on the issues as to what is remand of an accused, the power of Courts to remand an accused to the custody of police, and the essentials to ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ion unless the accused is produced before him in person for the first time and subsequently every time till the accused remains in the custody of the police, but the Magistrate may extend further detention in judicial custody on production of the accused either in person or through the medium of electronic video linkage; (c) no Magistrate of the second class, not specially empowered in this behalf by the High Court, shall authorise detention in the custody of the police. Explanation I.--For the avoidance of doubts, it is hereby declared that, notwithstanding the expiry of the period specified in paragraph (a), the accused shall be detained in custody so long as he does not furnish bail. Explanation II.--If any question arises whether an accused person was produced before the Magistrate as required under clause (b), the production of the accused person may be proved by his signature on the order authorising detention or by the order certified by the Magistrate as to production of the accused person through the medium of electronic video linkage, as the case may be…" 38. Thus, Section 167(2) of Cr.P.C. authorises the detention of an arrestee beyond 24 hours and empowers ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s unambiguous in this regard and is intended to protect the accused from the methods which may be adopted by some overzealous and unscrupulous police officers which at times may be at the instance of an interested party also. But it is also equally true that the police custody although is not the be-all and end-all of the whole investigation, yet it is one of its primary requisites particularly in the investigation of serious and heinous crimes. The legislature also noticed this and, has therefore, permitted limited police custody." 41. In V. Senthil Balaji (supra), the Hon'ble Apex Court emphasised that the power under Section 167(2) of Cr.P.C. is to be exercised after applying judicial mind and passing a reasoned order. The observations in this regard read as under: "53. ...While authorizing the detention of an accused, the Magistrate has got a very wide discretion. Such an act is a judicial function and, therefore, a reasoned order indicating application of mind is certainly warranted. He may or may not authorize the detention while exercising his judicial discretion. Investigation is a process which might require an accused's custody from time to time as authorised ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... to satisfy the Magistrate with adequate material on the need for its custody, be it police or otherwise. This important factor is to be kept in mind by him while passing the judicial order. We reiterate that Section 19 of the PMLA, 2002, supplemented by Section 167 of the Cr. PC., 1973 does provide adequate safeguards to an arrested person. If Section 167 of the CrPC, 1973 is not applicable, then there is no role for the Magistrate either to remand or otherwise. 68. Such a Magistrate has a distinct role to play when a remand is made of an accused person to an authority under the PMLA, 2002. It is his bounden duty to see to it that Section 19 of the PMLA, 2002 is duly complied with and any failure would entitle the arrestee to get released. The Magistrate shall also peruse the order passed by the authority under Section 19(1) of the PMLA, 2002. Section 167 of the CrPC, 1973 is also meant to give effect to Section 19 of the PMLA, 2002 and therefore it is for the Magistrate to satisfy himself of its due compliance. Upon such satisfaction, he can consider the request for custody in favour of an authority, as Section 62 of the PMLA, 2002, does not speak about the authority which is t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... "17. In terms of Section 19(3) of the Act of 2002 and the law laid down in the above decisions, Section 167 Cr. P.C. would necessarily have to be complied with once an arrest is made under Section 19 of the Act of 2002. The Court seized of the exercise under Section 167 Cr.P.C. of remanding the person arrested by the ED under Section 19(1) of the Act of 2002 has a duty to verify and ensure that the conditions in Section 19 are duly satisfied and that the arrest is valid and lawful. In the event the Court fails to discharge this duty in right earnest and with the proper perspective, as pointed out hereinbefore, the order of remand would have to fail on that ground and the same cannot, by any stretch of imagination, validate an unlawful arrest made under Section 19 of the Act of 2002. 18. In the matter of Madhu Limaye was a 3-Judge Bench decision of this Court wherein it was observed that it would be necessary for the State to establish that, at the stage of remand, the Magistrate directed detention in jail custody after applying his mind to all relevant matters and if the arrest suffered on the ground of violation of Article 22(1) of the Constitution, the order of remand would n ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 1. B. Sh. Buchi Babu, CA of Ms. K. Kavitha, had given a statement on 23.02.2023 that Sh. Arun Pillai had collaborated with Sh. Vijay Nair on policy formulation, with Sh. Nair offering provisions favouring Ms. Kavitha. It was stated that Sh. Nair used to work for Sh. Arvind Kejriwal i.e. the petitioner herein, and Sh. Manish Sisodia. WhatsApp messages retrieved from Sh. Buchi Babu's phone revealed certain Excise Policy provisions, two days before its finalisation by the GoM and Council of Ministers. Sh. Buchi Babu claimed that Sh. Vijay Nair had sent these provisions in relation to the new excise policy yet to be introduced to him and to Sh. Arun Pillai. The Role of Petitioner in Demanding Kickbacks & Petitioner's Meetings with the South Liquor Lobby 48. It is also the case of Directorate of Enforcement that the petitioner had demanded kickbacks from the 'South Group' in exchange of awarding favours to them in the formulation and implementation of the Excise Policy 2021-22. A. In support of this claim, reliance has been placed on the statement of Sh. Magunta Srinivasulu Reddy, recorded on 16.07.2023 under Section 50 of PMLA and on 17.07.2023 under Section 164 of Cr.P.C. wherei ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Arvind Kejriwal wanted his father to be the face of new excise policy since he was a reputed businessman in South India. Sh. Raghav Magunta also disclosed in his statement that after subsequent discussions with Ms. K. Kavitha and Sh. Buchi Babu, payments totaling Rs. 25 crores were made, which were facilitated by Sh. Gopi Kumaran, and these funds were borrowed from uncle of Sh. Raghav Magunta i.e, Sh. Sudhakar Reddy. C. Sh. Gopi Kumaran had corroborated the statement given by Sh. Raghav Magunta on 08.08.2023. D. In the statement dated 25.04.2023 recorded under Section 50 of PMLA, Sh. Sarath Reddy had revealed that he had expressed his desire to Sh. Arun Pillai that he wished to meet the top officials of Delhi Government including Sh. Arvind Kejriwal and Sh. Manish Sisodia, and Sh. Arun Pillai had assured him that he would arrange the meeting through Sh. Vijay Nair. He had further revealed that in July-August 2021, upon arriving in Delhi, he was picked up in a black SUV near the Oberoi Hotel and was taken to a government bungalow, which Sh. Vijay Nair claimed, was close to the residence of the present petitioner. Upon reaching there, Sh. Sarath Reddy had a 10-minute meeting wit ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... had revealed that proceeds of crime of about Rs. 45 crores, which was part of the bribes received from South Group, was used in the election campaign of the Goa elections. 53. It was revealed by Sh. Dinesh Arora on 01.10.2022 in his statement that on the instructions of Sh. Vijay Nair, he had coordinated a transfer of sum of Rs. 31 crores via hawala transactions, along with Sh. Abhishek Boinpally, Sh. Rajesh Joshi, and Sh. Sudhir. Sh. Abhishek Boinpally represents the South Group, Sh. Dinesh Arora is close to Sh. Manish Sisodia, Sh. Sudhir is linked to Vijay Nair, and Sh. Rajesh Joshi owns M/s Chariot Productions Media Pvt Ltd, which handled Aam Aadmi Party's Goa election campaign. 54. Upon scrutinising the vendors of M/s Chariot Productions involved in outdoor campaigning of Aam Aadmi Party, it was discovered that several vendors had received payments 'partly in cash and partly through bills'. For instance, M/s. Grace Advertising, whose employee was Sh. Islam Qazi had disclosed in statements dated 12.12.2022 and 23.12.2022 that he had made an invoice for only a partial amount as the remainder was paid to him in cash. Further, he had facilitated the engagement of another vendor, ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... lection campaign of Aam Aadmi Party, and further that he had received salary from Aam Aadmi Party in February 2022. He had also received salary from M/s Wizspk Communications and PR Ltd. which had been engaged by the Govt of NCT of Delhi. Moreover, he had also received funds from OML of Sh.Vijay Nair, and these facts are prima facie reflective of his relationship with the Aam Aadmi Party. 57. On examining the money trail, the Directorate of Enforcement has discovered that the statements of Sh. Ashok Patel, Sh. Kiran Bhai Patel, and Sh. Jagdish Sharma revealed that funds transferred to Goa originated from four routes: approximately Rs. 12 crore from Sh. Ashok Chandu Bhai of M/s Asheel Corporation (Angadiya), Rs. 7.1 crore from Sh. Devang Solanki of M/s KS Enterprise (Angadiya), Rs. 16 crore from Kirti Amba Lal (Angadiya), and Rs. 7.5 crore from M/s Neelkanth (Angadiya), with an additional Rs. 2 crore from M/s Ma Ambey (Angadiya), which is corroborated by the statements of witnesses recorded under Section 50 of PMLA. 58. Further, Sh. Ashok Chandu Bhai of M/s Asheel Corporation had allegedly received approximately Rs. 12 crore from Sh. Rajesh Joshi, owner of M/s. Chariot Productions ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... and the petitioner being its National Convenor would be incharge of and responsible for its business, thus, being liable under Section 70(1) of PMLA. Sh. Singhvi, on the other hand, had argued that this argument of the respondent was misplaced and liable to be rejected. 63. With regard to the aforesaid, it will firstly be appropriate to refer to Section 70 of PMLA, which reads as under: "70. Offences by companies. (1) Where a person committing a contravention of any of the provisions of this Act or of any rule, direction or order made thereunder is a company, every person who, at the time the contravention was committed, was in charge of and was responsible to the company, for the conduct of the business of the company as well as the company, shall be deemed to be guilty of the contravention and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly: Provided that nothing contained in this sub-section shall render any such person liable to punishment if he proves that the contravention took place without his knowledge or that he exercised all due diligence to prevent such contravention. *** Explanation 1.--For the purposes of this section,-- (i) "company" me ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Sh. Kejriwal shall be deemed to be guilty of offences punishable under Section 4 of PMLA. 67. Reliance has also been placed on the statement dated 16.11.2023 of Sh. N.D. Gupta recorded under Section 50 of PMLA, member of Rajya Sabha and National Treasurer of Aam Aadmi Party, who has revealed that Sh. Arvind Kejriwal is the overall incharge of the Party. He has further revealed that no approval/sanction of the National Executive or the Political Affairs Committee is taken for deciding election expenses, and that prabhari or state Incharge makes these expenses. He has further revealed that the National Convenor is the one who decides as to who shall head the state elections for their party. 68. Thus, on the basis of this material, it is the case of Directorate of Enforcement that Sh. Kejriwal has been intrinsically involved in the entire conspiracy of the Delhi Excise Policy Scam wherein the proceeds of crime were used in the election campaign of Aam Aadmi Party for Goa Assembly elections, and all these activities were not only done with his knowledge but also with his active collusion. 69. Therefore, suffice it to say that it is a matter of arguments and trial which may be taken ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... h amount of about 90 lakhs, payment of which was managed by the Aam Aadmi Party, Delhi office and the assurance which he had received from senior leaders of the party including the present petitioner Sh. Kejriwal that he need not worry about any expenses in relation to the election expenditure for Goa elections. 73. The various statements of Hawala operators recorded under Section 50 of PMLA reveal as to how cash amounts were received and sent for Goa Elections. The names and details of some survey workers, area managers, assembly managers and Aam Aadmi Party candidate are not being mentioned in this order since investigation is still pending, evidence is still being collected and mentioning of the statements in detail may be detrimental to the interest of the petitioner Sh. Kejriwal and the investigating agency at a later stage. 74. Thus, this Court having gone through the documents and the statements handed over to it by Directorate of Enforcement for the purpose of passing of this order to reach a conclusion as to whether Directorate of Enforcement had sufficient material in its possession for the arrest and remand of Sh. Kejriwal including the evidence regarding the money tra ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... sale profit margin plus Rs. 70,00,00,000/-; it is submitted, would constitute proceeds of crime, an offence punishable under the PML Act. The proceeds of crime were acquired, used and were in possession of the wholesale distributors who have unlawfully benefitted from illegal gain at the expense of the government exchequer and the consumers/buyers. Relevant portion of the criminal complaint filed by the DoE dated 04.05.2023, reads: "One of the reasons given by Sh Manish Sisodia is to compensate the wholesaler for increased license fee from Rs 5 lacs to Rs. 5 Cr. During this policy period, 14 LI licences were given by Excise Department, by raising the license fee for LI to Rs. 5 Cr in the entire period of operation of the Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22, the Govt. has earned Rs. 75.16 Cr from the license fee of LI (as per Excise department communication dated 11.04.2023) (RUD 34). On the other hand the excess profit earned by the wholesalers during this period is to the tune of Rs. 338 Cr. (7% additional profit earned due to increase from 5% to 12%, Rs. 581 Cr being the total profit of LI as informed by Excise department). Therefore there 1s no logical correlation between the license ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... er or the consumer. The illegal income (proceeds of crime, as per the DoE) would partly be recycled and returned in the form of bribes. * Vijay Nair, who was the middleman, a go-between, a member of AAP, and a co-confident of the appellant - Manish Sisodia, had interacted with Butchi Babu, Arun Pillai, Abhishek Boinpally and Sarath Reddy, to frame the excise policy on conditions and terms put forth and to the satisfaction and desire of the liquor group. * Vijay Nair and the members of the liquor group had meetings on different dates, including 16.03.2021, and had prepared the new excise policy, which was handed over to Vijay Nair. Thereupon, the commission/fee, which was earlier fixed at minimum of 5%, was enhanced to fixed fee of 12% payable to wholesale distributor. * The appellant - Manish Sisodia was aware that three liquor manufacturers have 85% share in the liquor market in Delhi. Out of them two manufacturers had 65% liquor share, while 14 small manufacturers had 20% market share. As per the term in the new excise policy - each manufacturer could appoint only one wholesale distributor, through whom alone the liquor would be sold. At the same time, the wholesale distrib ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ain liquor groups in exchange of receiving kickbacks for funding the elections of Aam Aadmi Party, whose National Convenor is the present petitioner. 77. In a nutshell, once there is prima-facie material regarding laundering of the kickbacks on Goa Elections and the money being already spent for the said purpose in the year 2022 itself, the recovery in the year 2024 or non-recovery of any remaining amount will become clear only once prosecution complaint is filed. The Courts in all criminal cases wait for the chargesheet/prosecution complaints to be filed and the entire evidence being placed before it against an accused before giving a finding on a prima-facie case for the purpose of cognizance, charge or final acquittal at the appropriate stages of trial and not when the investigation against an accused has begun and chargesheet/prosecution complaint is yet to be filed. A different criteria cannot be adopted in the present case for the said purpose. 78. To summarise, the material which has been encapsulated hereinabove reveals that Sh. Arvind Kejriwal had allegedly conspired with other persons and was involved in the formulation of Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22, in the process of ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... , in case of Vijay Madanlal Choudhary (supra), the challenge to Section 50 of PMLA was rejected by the Hon'ble Apex Court and it was held that statements recorded under Section 50 of PMLA are not in violation of Article 20(3) of the Constitution of India. 82. The aforesaid legal propositions were also reiterated by the Hon'ble Apex Court in case of Tarun Kumar (Supra) with following observations: "15. In our opinion, there is hardly any merit in the said submission of Mr. Luthra. In Rohit Tandon vs. Directorate of Enforcement, a three Judge Bench has categorically observed that the statements of witnesses/ accused are admissible in evidence in view of Section 50 of the said Act and such statements may make out a formidable case about the involvement of the accused in the commission of a serious offence of money laundering ..." 83. At the present stage of deciding the writ petition challenging arrest on the parameters of Section 19 of PMLA, when the investigation qua the petitioner is not even complete and prosecution complaint has not been filed, this Court would take into consideration the material collected by the investigating agency including statements of witnesses rec ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Statement of Approver recorded under Section 164 of Cr.P.C. 1. Statement of a person is recorded under Section 50 of PMLA by an officer of Directorate of Enforcement for the purpose of collecting information in connection with any investigation or proceedings under the Act. Statement of an approver is recorded under Section 164 Cr.P.C. by a judicial Magistrate or Special Judge so authorised as per law, where the approver, who is a co-accused, expresses his willingness to disclose the truth about the offence or the conspiracy. 2. A person whose statement is recorded under Section 50 of PMLA may or may not be an accused. An approver is always an accused who is granted pardon by the concerned Trial Judge, who appears as a witness for the prosecution during trial. 3. The proceedings under Section 50 of PMLA are solely by the prosecuting agency without any interference of a Court of law. The proceedings of recording statement of approver and granting of pardon are judicial proceedings with no interference of the investigating agency. 88. This Court therefore holds that, the contents of above paragraph would lead to a conclusion that to doubt and cast aspersions regarding t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... in this case will be questioning the judicial process which is governed by the law, and not by any government or investigating agency. 91. The law of approver is more than 100 years old (Section 337 of Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898 i.e. the old Code and Section 306 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 i.e. the new Code) and not one year old law to suggest as if enacted to falsely implicate the present petitioner and co-accused persons in this case. The law has been in existence even before the birth of many of us who are reading the judgment and the one who is writing it. The law on approver as well as the law on its evidentiary value has been tested by the Privy Council and the Hon'ble Supreme Court in innumerable cases, and has not been struck down to be unconstitutional till date by any Court of law. The present case is neither the first nor the last case wherein the approver's statements have been recorded or have been relied upon by the prosecution. 92. Trials have taken place, are taking place and have ended in conviction or acquittal in which approver's statements have been recorded and relied upon by prosecution. 93. Further, the question of non-supply and relianc ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e statement of one of the witnesses Sh. Magunta S. Reddy, which had been recorded under Section 50 of PMLA as well as before the Magistrate under Section 164 of Cr.P.C, on the ground that his statement was recorded immediately prior to the hearing of bail application of his son Sh. Raghav Magunta and recently, Sh. Magunta S. Reddy has been given a ticket to contest the upcoming Lok Sabha Elections from the alliance of ruling party. Similarly, Sh. Singhvi had also argued that the statement of approver Sh. Sarath Reddy is also not reliable since it has recently been discovered that he had paid an amount of Rs. 60 crores approximately to the ruling party at Centre through electoral bonds. 97. In this Court's opinion, who gives tickets for contesting elections to whom or who purchases electoral bonds for what purpose is not the concern of this Court, as this Court is required to apply the law and the evidence before it as it is and in the context in which it has been placed before it. 98. This Court also wonders as to whether it can, while deciding the present petition seeking declaration of arrest of petitioner as illegal, put fetters on a witness, who is not an accused, to contest ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... role of Sh. Kejriwal, the same cannot be a ground to disregard their statements completely. This is because an accused may realise his or her mistake at a later stage and may offer to state the true facts in exchange for securing pardon as per the law. 103. For example, consider a case where an accused initially denies involvement in a crime but later, upon reflection and perhaps upon advice from legal counsel, decides to cooperate with authorities and disclose the accurate details of the incident. Similarly, one often sees cases where an accused contests a case for several years on its merits but later apologises to the complainant after realising his mistake or acknowledging his wrongdoing. These instances demonstrate that individuals may evolve in their understanding of their actions and the legal consequences thereof, and these developments even otherwise are covered within the framework of the judicial process and the law of the country. III. WHETHER THE ARREST OF THE PETITIONER IS IN VIOLATION OF DIRECTIONS OF HON'BLE SUPREME COURT IN CASE OF PANKAJ BANSAL VS. UNION OF INDIA? 104. The prayer in the present petition itself mentions that the challenge to the arrest of the pe ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... . Arvind, Sh. Buchi Babu, Sh. Maguntra S. Reddy, Sh. Raghav Magunta, Sh. Sarath Reddy, Sh. Vijay Nair recorded under Section 50 of PMLA and Section 164 of Cr.P.C., as well as other material such as entry register of the office of the petitioner, which reflect that the petitioner was allegedly personally involved in formulation of the Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22, and prima-facie in process of demanding kickbacks from the South Group in exchange of favours. Similarly, material has also been collected by the Directorate of Enforcement, in the form of statements of witnesses of hawala operators, one candidate of Aam Aadmi Party and some survey workers, area managers, assembly managers, who had worked with the Aam Aadmi Party during the Goa Election 2022, alongwith WhatsApp chats between several persons, and other material collected through raids of Income Tax, which reflect that the kickbacks which were received from South Group were utilised by Aam Aadmi Party for funding Goa Elections 2022, whose National Convenor is the present petitioner. Contention regarding there being no fresh material collected by the respondent since October, 2023 109. One of the grounds mentioned in the pet ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... , prima facie, the mandatory provisions of Section 19 of PMLA have been satisfied by the Directorate of Enforcement while arresting the petitioner Sh. Kejriwal, in compliance of judgment of Pankaj Bansal (supra), and there is material at this stage which points out towards the guilt of the petitioner for commission of offence of money laundering. IV. WHETHER THE REMAND ORDER DATED 22.03.2024 HAS BEEN PASSED IN MECHANICAL AND ROUTINE MANNER? 115. The second prayer sought by the petitioner Sh. Kejriwal pertains to quashing and setting aside of the remand order dated 22.03.2024 as the same has been passed in a patently routine and mechanical manner by the learned Special Court. 116. In the initial discussion in this judgment, this Court has already referred to the law governing remand of an accused, ordinarily, and also in cases under PMLA. In case of V. Senthil Balaji (supra), the Hon'ble Supreme Court has emphasised that the Court has a wide discretion for remanding an accused to the custody of investigating agency, and such discretion must be exercised by passing a reasoned order, including ensuring compliance of Section 19 of PMLA in cases where arrest has been made under the p ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... he involvement of accused Arvind Kejriwal in the conspiracy of in formulation and implementation of the Excise Policy 2021--22 with a view to favour certain persons as also his involvement in seeking kickbacks from businessmen in exchange of favour to be granted to what is being referred to as the 'South group' and in collusion with co-accused Vijay Nair, Manish Sisodia and other members/representatives of the 'South group'. In this regard, material by way of statements of C. Arvind, the then Secretary of co-accused Manish Sisodia, Butchibabu and Magunta Srinivas Reddy, Raghav Magunta and P. Sarath Chandra Reddy recorded U/S 164 Cr.P.C. are also on record. Further, as revealed by co-accused Vijay Nair during investigation, he lived in a government bungalow, officially alloted to a Cabinet Minister close to the bungalow of the accused and is alleged to have received kickbacks to the tune of Rs. 100 crores from the 'South group' on behalf of the accused, in exchange for grant of favours in group of M/s. Indo Spirits, even retail zones and L-1 licences. 32. Further, there are allegations of proceeds of crime of approximately Rs. 45 crores having been allegedly received as part of th ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the summons under Section 50 of the PMLA. ii. Digital devices seized during the search have to be extracted and the data has to be confronted with the petitioner. iii. The petitioner is required to be confronted with voluminous material/records seized which is only possible in the custodial interrogation. iv. The petitioner needs to be interrogated with respect to other associates/entities involved in the Kickbacks given by South Group to the Aam Aadmi Party and its leaders. v. The petitioner needs to be interrogated to identify the complete modus operandi of the offence. 120. The learned Special Court in the impugned remand order dated 22.03.2024, while allowing the request of Directorate of Enforcement and granting it six days remand of the petitioner, had observed as under: "38. Therefore, in view of the above facts and circumstances, the above named accused is hereby remanded to the custody of ED till 28.03.2024 for the purposes of his detailed and sustained interrogation with respect to his role and to unearth the remaining proceeds of crime and for confronting him with data retrieved from digital devices and material seized during investigation..." 121. In case o ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... th the material collected by the investigating agency during the course of investigation i.e. to participate in the inquiry. Therefore, the investigating agency had no other option but to seek his custody through remand from the court of law to make him join the investigation and answer questions which needed to be asked such as confrontation with the statements and documents etc. to conclude investigation. 125. Therefore, this Court observes that the contention regarding remand order having been passed in mechanical and routine manner is without any merit, considering the observations made by the learned Special Court including ensuring due compliance of Section 19 of PMLA, taking note of material available against the petitioner and the need for his custodial interrogation. 126. Though not argued before this Court on behalf of the petitioner, this Court still deems it crucial to note that though the present petition was filed challenging the first remand order dated 22.03.2024 passed by the learned Special Court, however, the remand of petitioner Sh. Kejriwal had thereafter been extended vide order dated 28.03.2024 wherein the petitioner himself had submitted before the learned ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... vestigation despite being served with nine summons. The conduct of the petitioner in this regard has been summarised in the form a table, as follows: S.No. Summons Required Date of appearance Reasons Cited by Sh. Arvind Kejriwal for Not Joining Investigation 1. 30.10.2023 (First Summons) 02.11.2023 Reply given by petitioner on 02.11.2023 * The summons is not clear as to the capacity in which the petitioner is being called. * The summons fails to provide details in relation to the ECIR. * The summons appears to be motivated and issued for extraneous considerations. * The said summons have been issued at the behest of ruling party at the Centre * i.e. BJP * There are elections in five states in the month of November 2023, and the petitioner is the star campaigner of the AAP, and has official commitments. 2. 18.12.2023 (Second Summons) 21.12.2023 Reply given by petitioner on 20.12.2023 * The petitioner has to attend Vipassana Meditation course. * The timing of summons strengthens petitioner's belief that it is based on a propoganda. * The petitioner further re-iterated that it is not clear that in which capacity the petitioner is being called, and that th ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e Hon'ble LG's address. 8. 26.02.2024 (Eighth Summons) 04.03.2024 Reply given by petitioner on 04.03.2024 * The presence of the petitioner as an MLA and the Chief Minister is important to respond to various issues raised by Hon'ble MLAs. * Further, the petitioner has to be present in person on 04.03.2024 as the annual budget of GNCTD will be presented in the Assembly, and the presence of the petitioner in the Assembly is necessary. 9. 16.03.2024 (Ninth Summons) 21.03.2024 Reply given by petitioner on 16.03.2024 * The petitioner has challenged the summons given by the Directorate of Enforcement dated 16.03.2024, which is pending before the Hon'ble Delhi High Court. * The petitioner is presently occupied with his duties as Chief Minister of NCT of Delhi and also in planning, preparing, and campaigning for the General Elections of 2024. 132. This Court, therefore, notes that Sh. Kejriwal had sent a reply to every summon and the content of each reply can be summarised for easy understanding that: i. he was not informed as to why and in what capacity he was being summoned; ii. he was being summoned at the behest of ruling party at the centre i.e. BJP ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ess, sub-section (2) empowers the authorised officials to issue summon to any person. We fail to understand as to how Article 20(3) would come into play in respect of process of recording statement pursuant to such summon which is only for the purpose of collecting information or evidence in respect of proceeding under this Act. Indeed, the person so summoned, is bound to attend in person or through authorised agent and to state truth upon any subject concerning which he is being examined or is expected to make statement and produce documents as may be required by virtue of sub-section (3) of Section 50 of the 2002 Act. The criticism is essentially because of sub-section (4) which provides that every proceeding under sub-sections (2) and (3) shall be deemed to be a judicial proceeding within the meaning of Sections 193 and 228 of the IPC. Even so, the fact remains that Article 20(3) or for that matter Section 25 of the Evidence Act, would come into play only when the person so summoned is an accused of any offence at the relevant time and is being compelled to be a witness against himself. This position is well-established…" 137. The Hon'ble Apex Court in case of Directorat ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... to summon 'any person' whose attendance may be crucial either to give some evidence or to produce any records during the course of investigation or proceedings under PMLA. The persons so summoned are also bound to attend in person or through authorised agents and are required to state truth upon any subject concerning which such person is being examined or is expected to make a statement and produce documents as may be required in a case. Replying to Summons issued under Section 50 of PMLA cannot amount to Joining Investigation 139. Sh. Singhvi had defended the petitioner's conduct of not joining investigation pursuant to service of nine summons issued by the Directorate of Enforcement under Section 50 of PMLA, stating that there was no non-compliance by Sh. Arvind Kejriwal of the nine summons as he had responded to each and every summon by way of letters, and thus, no fault can be found with his conduct which necessitated his arrest by the Directorate of Enforcement. 140. The argument as to whether the conduct of Sh. Kejriwal of not joining investigation, despite service of nine summons, was a justifiable contributive cause necessitating his arrest, when tested in light of the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e accused cannot dictate the manner in which an investigation has to be conducted. The relevant portion of the decision reads as under: "51. In Romila Thapar v. Union of India, (2018) 10 SCC 753, one of us, A.M. Khanwilkar, J., speaking for a three-Judge Bench of this Court (Dr. D.Y. Chandrachud, J. dissenting) noted the dictum in a line of precedents laying down the principle that the accused "does not have a say in the matter of appointment of investigating agency". In reiterating this principle, this Court relied upon its earlier decisions in Narmada Bai v. State of Gujarat, (2011) 5 SCC 79, Sanjiv Rajendra Bhatt v. Union of India, (2016) 1 SCC 1, E. Sivakumar v. Union of India, (2018) 7 SCC 365, and Divine Retreat Centre v. State of Kerala, (2008) 3 SCC 542. This Court observed: "30…the consistent view of this Court is that the accused cannot ask for changing the investigating agency or to do investigation in a particular manner including for court-monitored investigation." (Emphasis supplied) 144. In P. Chidambaram v. Directorate of Enforcement (2019) 9 SCC 24 also, the Hon'ble Supreme Court has held that: "66…there is a well-defined and demarcated funct ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... a new jurisprudence or different sets of rules to prevail regarding investigation qua 'classes' & 'masses' by each time permitting an excuse or request that being a public figure, being an MLA, Chairman of the Waqf Board and being busy with some activities of his constituency, he could not appear before the investigating agency. 75. Being a public figure in politics, he is essentially first and foremost in the public service and it is natural that he would have at all times, something or the other happening in his constituency. It is for the public figure to find time and appear before the investigating agency, when so required as per the law, since the investigating agencies are also working for the State itself and are working towards public service being public servants. 76. Even the lawmakers should know that disobeying the law will get them caught up in legal consequences as envisaged under criminal law as any other common citizen without creating a special class for them as all citizens are equal in the eyes of law. This is more critical when such persons refuse to assist but rather resist the investigative process, especially the process which has not been struck down by ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... when the PMLA came into force, the investigating agency has not extended any special privilege to any person in absence of any specific order in this regard from a competent court of law. The investigating agency here also was not bound to extend any special privilege to the petitioner in absence of a Court order as the law does not envisage so. Timing of Arrest and the Argument of Level Playing Field 150. It was the contention of Sh. Singhvi that the arrest of the petitioner is illegal also on the ground of the mala fide intention and the arbitrariness reflected in the manner and the timing of the arrest, and his arrest raises serious questions about 'the level playing field' in the upcoming Lok Sabha Elections 2024, for the reason of petitioner being not able to campaign for the elections. 151. As regards this argument, this Court is of the opinion that the petitioner herein has been arrested in a case of money laundering and had been presented before the learned Special Court, and the Courts have to examine his arrest and remand in context of the law concerning arrest and remand, irrespective of the timing of elections. In absence of any mala fide intention on part of Directo ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ough he had mentioned in his reply dated 18.01.2024 sent to the Directorate of Enforcement in response to their summons, that he believed that he was being summoned repeatedly as the agency wanted to arrest him. The petitioner had finally approached this Court only on 19.03.2024 by way of a Writ Petition No. 937/2024 seeking interim relief from arrest, apart from challenging legality of summons. However, the Hon'ble Division Bench of this Court did not grant him any relief either from appearance before the Directorate of Enforcement or any interim relief in form of pre-arrest bail. 154. In such circumstances, there was nothing that barred Directorate of Enforcement within the parameters of law to have searched his residence under Section 17 of PMLA and to have arrested him under Section 19 of PMLA, moreso since he was not joining investigation since October 2023 despite being given repeated opportunities and the Directorate of Enforcement was in possession of material against him regarding which he was being requested to appear before it repeatedly. 155. Therefore, this Court is of the opinion that to hold that the timing was chosen by the investigating agency will be accepting a ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... t was observed that it is necessary for the officer concerned to record reasons for his belief that a person is guilty of an offence under PMLA and needs to be arrested. i. Impact of Non-joining of Investigation by the Petitioner on the Trial of Co-accused Persons 160. This Court notes that the Hon'ble Apex Court while denying the application for grant of bail of co-accused Sh. Manish Sisodia had in the judgment dated 30.10.2023 passed in Manish Sisodia v. CBI & Ors. 2023 INSC 956 had recorded that the Directorate of Enforcement had given an assurance that they shall take appropriate steps to ensure that the trial is concluded within a period of 6-8 months. 161. In this Court's opinion, due to non-joining of investigation by the petitioner, the co-accused persons who are already in judicial custody, were also impacted since his non-joining has in a way delayed the investigation since October, 2023, and all this while, the Directorate of Enforcement was constantly trying to get the petitioner to join investigation as his name was mentioned in many statements of the witnesses including the approvers. The Directorate of Enforcement needed to question Sh. Kejriwal as the witnesses, ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the Directorate of Enforcement was in possession of material on the basis of which it had reasons to believe that the petitioner was guilty of offence of money laundering, it would have had no recourse available but to arrest the petitioner and to seek his remand so as to confront him with the statements of witnesses and approvers and other incriminating material collected during the course of investigation. CONCLUSION The State is static, the Governments are at the will of the People 166. While concluding this judgment, this Court holds that Judges are bound by law and not by politics. This Court also holds that judgments are driven by legal principles and not political affiliations. 167. Learned Senior Counsel appearing on behalf of the petitioner had argued that the arrest made by the Directorate of Enforcement was mala fide, and made at the time of elections, and thereby seriously compromising 'free and fair elections' and thus, also affecting 'democracy' which in turn is 'basic structure' of the Constitution of India. 168. In this Court's opinion, the Courts of law are one of the pillars of democracy. Judges, as custodians of justice, are bound by the law and not by poli ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of law as they are not relevant to the legal proceedings. 174. In the case at hand, it is important to clarify that the matter before this Court is not a conflict between the Central Government and the petitioner Sh. Arvind Kejriwal. Instead, it is a case between the petitioner Sh. Arvind Kejriwal and the Directorate of Enforcement. In such legal proceedings, it is crucial for the Court to maintain its focus solely on the legal merits of the case. Political factors or dynamics should not and have never influenced the court's deliberations or decision-making process. The role of the Court is to impartially assess the evidence presented and apply the relevant laws to determine the outcome of the case. Any attempt to introduce political considerations into the proceedings would undermine the integrity of the legal process and could compromise the pursuit of justice. Therefore, it is essential for the court to remain vigilant in ensuring that the case is adjudicated based on legal principles and not influenced by extraneous factors. 175. Though Sh. Singhvi argued that he was not arguing politics but law, however, due to complexity of facts of the case which are intertwined with t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e of political expediency. 180. The petitioner or the respondent may find the Court to be excessively harsh or lenient in their cases, however, the Court has to dispassionately only keep its concern with application of law and decide the case before it accordingly. The Courts have to only perform their duty of application of law irrespective of the political or financial standing of any person before it. At the same time, keeping in mind a fair trial and hearing to an accused. The Decision 181. In view of the aforesaid discussion, and for the reasons recorded by this Court in para nos. 104 to 114, this Court is of the opinion that the arrest of petitioner Sh. Arvind Kejriwal was not in contravention with the law laid down by the Hon'ble Apex Court in case of Pankaj Bansal (supra) in respect of Section 19 of PMLA. Similarly, for the reasons recorded in para nos. 115 to 127, the impugned remand order dated 22.03.2024 passed by the learned Special Court does not suffer from any infirmity or illegality. 182. Consequently, since the arrest of the petitioner and the impugned remand order dated 22.03.2024 are held valid, the prayer seeking release of petitioner is also liable to be re ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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