Srinagar, Apr 18: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday told a Delhi court that jailed Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was deliberately eating mangoes and sweets and taking tea with sugar so as to raise his blood sugar level and use that as a ground to secure bail on medical grounds, Bar and Bench reported.
The submissions were made by ED counsel Zoheb Hossain before Special Judge Kaveri Baweja in response to a plea by Kejriwal for regular check-ups of his sugar level and consultation with his regular doctor through video conference.
“Today, he (Kejriwal) is in court custody. He is in custody because of our case. The cause of concern is he was allowed prescribed home cooked food because he claimed he has high diabetes. But he is having mangoes, sweets and sugar with tea. This is a basis to create a ground for bail,” Hossain submitted.
Hossain said that the details came to be known after the agency wrote to Tihar jail and sought information about Kejriwal’s diet and the medicines being taken by him.
Advocate Vivek Jain, appearing for Kejriwal, objected to the submissions by ED and said that the investigating agency was making these allegations only for the media.
Jain also said that he is withdrawing the present application and that he will file a better one.
Kejriwal is currently lodged in Tihar jail in connection with the money laundering probe related to Delhi excise policy case.
His lawyers had informed the Rouse Avenue Court that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor’s sugar levels had dropped to 46 and was continuously fluctuating.
The Court today sought a report from Tihar Jail about the diet chart of Kejriwal.
Kejriwal was arrested on March 21 by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on allegations that he was the “key conspirator” in the money laundering case registered in the matter.
The arrest took place hours after his plea for interim protection from arrest was rejected by the Delhi High Court.
On March 22, Kejriwal was produced by the ED before judge Baweja, who initially remanded the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader to ED custody till March 28.
On March 28, Kejriwal’s ED custody was extended further.
Finally, on April 1, Kejriwal was remanded to judicial custody till today.
Earlier, the Court had denied Kejriwal’s plea to have five meetings with his legal team in Tihar Jail instead of two meetings which he is allowed.
When he was sent to judicial custody on April 1, the Court had allowed him to carry books and have home-cooked meal along with certain other facilities.