New Delhi, Apr 20 (PTI) After a Delhi High Court judge refused to recuse herself from hearing the liquor policy case, rejecting the pleas of AAP convener Arvind Kejriwal and others seeking her withdrawal, the party on Monday questioned the high court’s true intentions.
Aam Aadmi Party’s Delhi unit president Saurabh Bharadwaj claimed that if the High Court was genuinely concerned about the image of the judiciary, then Chief Minister Rekha Gupta should have faced contempt proceedings for her alleged remarks that the Rouse Avenue Court judge was “set”, which is why Kejriwal was discharged.
Delhi High Court judge Swarana Kanta Sharma refused to recuse herself from hearing the case as she rejected the pleas of Kejriwal and others for her withdrawal. Justice Sharma said a political leader cannot be allowed to damage an institution without any basis, as a personal attack on a judge is an attack on the judiciary itself, and “a politician cannot be permitted to cross the boundary and sit in judgment over the competence of a judge”.
Bharadwaj said that the order was delivered in Justice Swarna Kanta Sharma’s court, where former chief minister Kejriwal and others, who were discharged in the case, had expressed apprehension that they would not get justice from the court.
“Kejriwal had listed 10 points before the court explaining the reasons for this apprehension, but the court held that all those apprehensions were legally untenable,” Bharadwaj said.
Bharadwaj further said that special judge Geetanjali Goel was changed after the Enforcement Directorate raised doubts, alleging that the judge had asked tough questions to the ED.
Meanwhile, reacting to the high court’s order on Kejriwal’s plea, Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Monday said that it sends a “clear and unequivocal” message that the independence, impartiality and dignity of the judiciary are non-negotiable.
“The attempt by Kejriwal to cast aspersions on the judicial process and question the impartiality of a sitting High Court judge is not only inappropriate but also deeply undermines the sanctity of democratic institutions,” Gupta said in a post on X.
When individuals who have held high public office resort to such conduct, it risks eroding public confidence in the justice delivery system, she added.
“It is equally unfortunate to witness a recurring pattern where judicial orders are selectively accepted when convenient and questioned when not. Such double standards have no place in a constitutional democracy governed by the rule of law,” she added in the post.
Kejriwal had raised several objections against Justice Sharma hearing the CBI’s plea against his discharge in the liquor-policy case, including that she had earlier denied him relief on his petition challenging his arrest and refused to grant relief on the bail pleas of other accused, including Manish Sisodia and K Kavitha. On February 27, the trial court discharged Kejriwal, Sisodia and others in the Delhi liquor-policy case, saying the CBI’s case was wholly unable to survive judicial scrutiny and stood discredited in its entirety. PTI SSM SHB MPL MPL
This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.