Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal taken to Tihar jail after court sends him to judicial custody

New Delhi: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was brought to Tihar Jail here on Monday after a city court sent him to judicial custody till April 15, officials said.

Kejriwal was arrested on March 21 by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with an excise policy-linked money laundering case.

“He was brought to Tihar jail and will be lodged in Jail number 2. He was taken for a medical examination. He will be kept in a separate cell,” a jail official said.

AAP leader Sanjay Singh, who was arrested in October last year in the same case, was earlier lodged in jail number 2 but was shifted to Jail number 5 recently.

Kejriwal’s former deputy Manish Sisodia, who is in jail in connection with the same case, is lodged in Jail number 1, while BRS leader K Kavitha is in Jail number 6 of the women’s jail.

Earlier in the day, Kejriwal was produced in the court of Special Judge Kaveri Baweja after his Enforcement Directorate custody came to an end. The ED had sought 15-day judicial custody of Kejriwal, saying he was “totally uncooperative”.

Speaking to reporters before entering court, the AAP leader said, “Whatever the prime minister is doing(referring to his arrest) is not good for the country”.

During the last hearing on March 28, the Rouse Avenue Court saw heated arguments between Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who himself addressed the Court, and the lawyers of the ED. The court had later extended his custody till April 1.

Meanwhile, security has been stepped up at the Tihar Jail, where Kejriwal’s two former colleagues — Manish Sisodia and Satyendra Jain — are already incarcerated.

The ED had previously claimed that Kejriwal was intrinsically involved in the entire conspiracy of the Delhi excise policy case wherein the policy was drafted and implemented in a manner that certain private persons were favoured and benefitted in a quid pro quo of receiving kickbacks.

As per ED, the proceeds of the crime to the tune of Rs 45 Crore were used in the election campaign of Aam Aadmi Party for Goa.