Nothing to suggest improper behaviour in the creation of the excise policy or in Arvind Kejriwal’s acceptance of the proceeds: Attorney

NEW DELHI: In a Delhi court on Friday, the chief minister Arvind Kejriwal’s legal team angrily rejected any misconduct on his behalf. The attorney said in court in Delhi that there was “no material” or “evidence” to suggest that the AAP supremo had committed any illegality in the creation of the excise policy or in receiving any revenues.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) detained 55-year-old Kejriwal on Thursday on suspicion of breaking anti-money laundering rules.

The political scene was rocked by the arrest, which was made from his official house in the Civil Lines neighbourhood of Delhi.
Kejriwal’s attorney, in defiance of the ED’s request for custody, told the court “that the present case is stitched together only on the basis of the statements of the co-accused and the statements of officers who are working under the control of the complainant herein, i.e., LG of Delhi.”.
“There is no information or proof to suggest that the arrestee received any profits or that there was misconduct in the creation of the insurance. No damning evidence demonstrating the arrestee’s participation in any crime or in any process or action was discovered, despite the case being investigated for more than a year and more than 200 raids,” he said.
The defence emphasised further that no hard proof connecting Kejriwal to any wrongdoings had been found, even after a protracted inquiry that lasted more than a year and included more than 200 searches.
He said that powers under Section 50 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) are “misused in a malicious manner, and people are coerced, forced, and pressurised to give unsubstantiated statements” in the case in order to “unleash political vendetta” and for unrelated purposes.