SC refuses urgent hearing of bail extension plea by Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal

The Supreme Court on May 28 refused urgent hearing of the bail extension plea filed by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and sent the matter to Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud for further directions on the petition's listing for hearing.  

Earlier, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief sought a seven-day extension to his interim bail on medical grounds. The bail term is set to expire on June 1. As per the plea, the chief minister is required to undergo some medical tests,  including a PET-CT scan. Kejriwal has reportedly experienced a sudden weight loss coupled with high-ketone levels, indicative of serious underlying issues.

A vacation bench of the apex court comprising Justices JK Maheshwari and KV Viswanathan said the CJI will take an appropriate decision on listing Kejriwal’s plea because the judgment has been reserved in the main matter.

The bench asked Abhishek Singhvi, appearing on behalf of the AAP chief, as to why the plea was not mentioned for urgent listing last week when Justice Dipankar Datta, one of the judges of the main bench headed by Justice Sanjiv Khanna which had granted the interim bail to the chief minister, was sitting on the vacation bench, Hindustan Times reported.

On May 10, the top court granted Kejriwal an interim bail for 21 days to enable him to campaign for Lok Sabha elections. The Delhi CM was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on March 21 in connection to the liquor policy case.

Arvind Kejriwal, who was lodged in Tihar Jail, is supposed to surrender on June 2.