Excise policy scam: SC to hear CM's pleas today

New Delhi: The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear on Thursday Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's pleas seeking bail and challenging his arrest by the CBI in the alleged excise policy scam.

According to the cause list, a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan is likely to hear the matter. The top court had on August 23 allowed the CBI to file its counter affidavit in the matter and gave two days to Kejriwal to file a rejoinder.

Kejriwal has filed two separate petitions challenging the denial of bail and against his arrest by the CBI in the case. He has challenged the August 5 order of the Delhi High Court upholding his arrest. The AAP chief was arrested by the CBI on June 26. On August 14, the top court refused to grant interim bail to Kejriwal in the case and sought a response from the probe agency on his plea challenging his arrest. The Delhi High Court had on

August 5 upheld the arrest of the chief minister as legal, and said there was no malice in the acts done by the CBI which was able to demonstrate how the AAP supremo could influence witnesses who could muster the courage to depose only after his arrest.