Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal Skips Eighth ED Summons in Excise Policy Case, Says Ready To Appear Before Agency Virtually After March 12

New Delhi, March 4: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday skipped the eighth summons by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with the excise policy case and expressed readiness to appear before the agency through video-conferencing March 12, government sources said.

Sources in the Enforcement Directorate (ED) said the agency was examining Kejriwal's response. The agency might not allow Kejriwal's request to appear virtually and might issue a ninth summons to him for questioning in the case, they said. Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal Terms Summon by Enforcement Directorate ‘Illegal’, Says Will Attend Hearing Via Video Conferencing.

Kejriwal, in a press conference, said it was written in law that ED proceedings are like judicial proceedings. "That means the agency is like a court. In a court, any party is allowed to be present through video conferencing. If I am asking for video-conferencing, which is my right, I hope they will allow it," he said.

The chief minister and Aam Aadmi Party national convener also said he has no objection over a live streaming of his appearance before the agency if it so decides. "This is not my demand. But, If ED wants this I have no objection," he told reporters.

Kejriwal further stated that he maintains the ED summonses to him were "illegal" and yet was ready to appear before it through video-conferencing. "We have not done anything wrong or not trying to hide," he said. He also said the grounds cited by him led to the High Court quashing the ED's notices in other cases. "If those were quashed, in this case also it's invalid," he claimed. Delhi Excise Policy Case: Arvind Kejriwal Requests ED for Post-March 12 Date Amidst Summons in Excise Scam.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) alleged that the probe agency's intention was to arrest Kejriwal in the "middle of the Lok Sabha polls". Kejriwal has skipped multiple summonses of the ED, calling them illegal and asking the agency to wait as the matter was in court.

The schedule for the polls, expected to be held in April-May, is yet to be announced by the Election Commission. In his latest reply to the ED, the sources said, Kejriwal has stated that the summonses are "illegal" but still he is ready to answer the questions of the probe agency.

Kejriwal has to appear before a city court on March 16 as it has sought his personal appearance in a complaint filed by the ED over him skipping its summonses. The AAP demanded that Kejriwal be questioned by the ED through video-conferencing and it be live telecast. Hitting out at the chief minister, BJP MP Manoj Tiwari said no further relaxation should be given to him.

"What kind of a message is he (Kejriwal) giving to the children of Delhi? I believe that no further relaxation should be given to him. He should be dealt with strictly now," Tiwari told PTI-Videos. Delhi BJP spokesperson Harish Khurana alleged that Kejriwal has disrespected the law by skipping the ED's summonses. "He (Kejriwal) is now saying that he will appear before the ED virtually on March 12. He can do this even today if he wants to appear virtually," Khurana said.

Delhi Health Minister and AAP leader Saurabh Bharadwaj said several BJP ministers and spokespersons were claiming that Kejriwal was trying to avoid giving answers but the AAP kept saying that the matter is not about the questions but about his arrest. "So, now the chief minister has found a middle path. He has said that as soon as the Budget session ends, he will give the answers to every question via video-conferencing," Bharadwaj told PTI-Videos.