AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal’s judicial custody was extended till June 6 as he insisted on not furnishing a bail bond in a criminal defamation case. Nitin Gadkari had filed the case against Kejriwal for naming him among the “most corrupt”.
Metropolitan Magistrate Gomati Manocha, while extending the remand in judicial custody of the former Delhi Chief Minister, chided him on Friday for “legal illiteracy”. The magistrate said the court was only following legal procedure, adding: “If other leaders of the party can furnish bond to secure bail, why can’t Kejriwal do the same?”
Manocha further said: “If you (Kejriwal) think the order (for custody) is wrong you can appeal to a higher court. If you are right I would like to have guidance from a higher court.
“What problem do you have in signing the bond? It is just like an undertaking. You don’t even have to submit any money for it”.
“Being in the position you were (as chief minister), I expect you to be sensible,” the magistrate added.
Kejriwal insisted he has not done anything wrong. “What is my fault? Earlier also in defamation cases by politicians I have been released without a bond,” he pointed out. When he added “Gadkari was the one to do corruption” it met with strong protest from lawyers and BJP supporters in court. The court asked him to refrain from making such statements in court, to which Kejriwal apologised.
On May 21, the court had sent Kejriwal to custody after he had refused to furnish bail bond in the case, but was willing to give an undertaking to appear in court as and when required.
Legal requirementDuring the hearing, senior advocate Shanti Bhushan, who appeared for Kejriwal, argued that in such cases where the accused has not been arrested, there is no requirement to furnish bail bond.
Meanwhile, AAP leader and senior lawyer Prashant Bhushan indicated that the party will raise the issue of legal reforms, especially the insistence on bail bond. “Many cases are there in past where undertrials spend 2-3 years just coz they were not able to afford bail and are later proven innocent,” he tweeted.
He said the practice of insisting on bail is a “major drawback”, as sometimes poor people do not have the money.
“Many times the time spent by the undertrial exceeds the time required to complete his punishment if he was convicted,” he tweeted.