‘Hope of getting justice shattered’: Arvind Kejriwal refuses to appear before court, writes to Justice Swarana Kanta | India News
New Delhi: Up Convenor Arvind Kejriwal Delhi High Court Justice Swarana Kant wrote a letter to Sharma on Monday, refusing to appear in court in person or through a lawyer for the hearing of the Delhi Excise Policy case.In the letter, Kejriwal said he had “lost hope of getting justice” from the high court judge and had decided to “follow Mahatma Gandhi’s path of satyagraha”.Kejriwal said, “I have lost hope of getting justice from Justice Swarna Kant ji. So I have decided to follow Mahatma Gandhi’s path of Satyagraha.”He added that the decision was taken after listening to his “inner voice” and maintained that he would exercise his right to appeal against the order in the Supreme Court.I took this decision after listening to my inner conscience. I will reserve the right to approach the Supreme Court to appeal the decision of Justice Swarana Kant,” Kejriwal said.This comes days after the Delhi High Court refused permission to a petition by Kejriwal that sought the withdrawal of Justice Swarana Kant Sharma from hearing the Delhi Excise Policy case.In the petition, Kejriwal contended that there was a serious, bona fide and reasonable apprehension that the hearing in the matter before him would not be fair and impartial.His petition stated that he heard multiple cases arising out of the CBI FIR, including Kejriwal’s plea against his arrest, and never granted relief to any of the accused.However, Justice Sharma made it clear that withdrawal cannot be based on perceptions or unfounded apprehensions, warning that such efforts risk undermining public confidence in the judiciary.It said the allegations were “based on speculation and innuendo” and fell short of the legal standard required to establish bias.Addressing the allegations of his children being central government panel counsel, the judge said: “Serf Kejriwal ji ne ye chalagaya lagaya hai” (Only Kejriwal ji has raised his complaint), adding that if such allegations are anticipated, “the court cannot hear any matter” where the UoI is a party.He further said, “If the children of politicians can enter politics, how fair would it be to question when families of judges enter the legal profession and struggle and prove themselves like others” and noted that “such an impulse is not only baseless but ignores the judicial office and integrity attached to it”.“There really is such a thing as a conflict of interest, and then it looks like one to everyone else. In this case, they portrayed a conflict where there really isn’t one. A litigant cannot be allowed to create a situation that undermines the judicial process,” he said.
