Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. | Photo Credit: Reuters In a victory for Aam Aadmi Party, the Supreme Court granted bail to Delhi Chief Minister and party supremo Arvind Kejriwal on Friday (September 13, 2024) in connection with the Delhi excise policy case. A Bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan granted the relief to Mr. Kejriwal on a bail bond of ₹10 lakh, and two sureties. The top court also directed Mr. Kejriwal not to make any public comment on the merits of the case.Arvind Kejriwal bail plea LIVE updatesSplit opinion on validity of arrestThe Bench concurred on the grant of bail to Mr. Kejriwal, who was arrested on June 26, but delivered a split opinion on the question of validity of the CM’s arrest by the CBI. Highlighting that the CM has suffered prolonged incarceration, the Bench said, “Four chargesheets have been filed since the FIR was registered on August 17, 2022. The latest chargesheet was filed on August 29, 2024. The documents are extensive. Completion of trial may not occur in the near future.” CBI did not violate Section 41A (3) of CrPC, in the arrest of the CM, Justice Kant said. There is no impediment in arrest of a person already in judicial custody, he added. Justice Ujjal Bhuyan, while disagreeing with Justice Kant’s opinion, said, “CBI did not feel the need or necessity for the arrest of the CBI. It was only after Kejriwal was granted in the ED case, that CBI moved in. The timing of the CBI arrest raises suspicion.“Calling CBI the ‘premier probe agency of the country’, Justice Bhuyan said that the agency must be seen to act above above-board. “Every effort should be seen that arrest is not made in a high-handed manner, especially in a democracy. The CBI should work to lose the perception that it is a “caged parrot”. It should be in fact seen as an “uncaged parrot”, he said. Published – September 13, 2024 11:11 am IST