Excise policy case: Durgesh Pathak gets bail, Kejriwal’s judicial custody extended

Delhi court grants bail to AAP leader Durgesh Pathak in excise policy scam case, extends Arvind Kejriwal's custody.

Two persons, including senior Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader and Delhi MLA Durgesh Pathak, arrested in connection with the now-withdrawn Delhi excise policy for 2021-22, were granted bail by different courts in the Capital on Wednesday.

A Rouse Avenue court, while granting relief to Mr. Pathak, extended the judicial custody of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, a co-accused in the case, till September 25.

The court had, last month, allowed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to prosecute Mr. Kejriwal and Mr. Pathak in connection with the alleged scam. The agency had filed its final chargesheet in July in which it termed the Delhi CM the “kingpin” of the case.

Meanwhile, the Delhi High Court granted bail to Hyderabad-based businessman Arun Ramchandra Pillai, against whom the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had initiated an excise policy-related money laundering probe. The ED had arrested him on March 6 last year, claiming him to be a close aide of Bharat Rashtra Samithi leader K. Kavitha and the frontman for the ‘South Group’. Ms. Kavitha, who was also arrested by the probe agencies in connection with the excise case, was granted bail by the Supreme Court last month.

Soon after securing bail, Mr. Pathak interacted with the media, accusing the BJP of attempting to break the AAP.

“The Prime Minister wants to finish off AAP. We are seeing this unfold over the past 2-3 years. However, all their plans are slowly getting exposed. AAP leaders are now getting bail in the excise policy cases and are walking out of the jail one by one,” he said, adding that the Central investigating agencies do not have any “substantive proof” against AAP leaders.

In response, a Delhi BJP spokesperson said, “Kejriwal is in jail while (former Delhi Deputy CM) Manish Sisodia, (Rajya Sabha member) Sanjay Singh, and (former AAP communication in-charge) Vijay Nair are all out on bail, and now Pathak has also joined this list. All these accused will soon be convicted after the trial concludes.”