New Delhi, March 30 The Enforcement Directorate moved the Delhi High Court on Monday, challenging the acquittal of former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in two separate cases filed against him for failing to appear before the agency despite summons issued in the excise policy case.
The ED's appeal against the trial court's January 22 order is scheduled to be heard by Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma on Wednesday.
The agency alleged that the then Chief Minister intentionally failed to comply with the summons and did not participate in the investigation.
It also alleged that Kejriwal raised frivolous objections and deliberately created grounds for not participating in the investigation.
In its verdict, the trial court said that the ED failed to prove that Kejriwal intentionally disobeyed the summons issued to him.
The ED has alleged that the other accused in the case were in contact with Kejriwal to formulate the now-scrapped excise policy, which resulted in undue benefits and kickbacks to the Aam Aadmi Party.
Kejriwal is currently out on interim bail in the money laundering case, with the Supreme Court referring questions on the "need and necessity of arrest" under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) to a larger bench for detailed consideration.
On February 27, the trial court discharged Kejriwal, Sisodia, and 21 others in the liquor policy case, stating that the CBI case was entirely unable to withstand judicial scrutiny and was discredited in its entirety.
The CBI's plea against the discharge is pending in the high court.