NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday stayed proceedings against Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal in a poll code violation case in connection with an election speech made during the run-up to the 2014 Lok Sabha polls in Uttar Pradesh.
“There will be stay on the proceedings till the next date of hearing,” a bench of justices KM Joseph and BV Nagarathna said as it issued notice to the UP government, The matter will be taken up after five weeks.
Kejriwal approached the top court in the 8-year-old case, saying that he apprehended arrest after his petition to be discharged as an accused was dismissed by the Allahabad high court on January 16.
The UP police registered a case against Arvind Kejriwal in connection with a speech delivered by him at a rally in Aurangabad on May 2, 2014. In this speech, according to the First Information Report (FIR), Kejriwal is alleged to have said that those who vote for the Congress will be considered ‘gaddar’ (traitor) while those who vote for Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will not be spared by ‘khuda’ (God).
Kejriwal was booked under Section 125 of the Representation of People Act which prescribes a maximum of three years imprisonment for people convicted of promoting or attempting to promote on grounds of religion, race, caste, community, or language, feeling of enmity of hatred between different classes of the citizens.
The FIR was registered at Sultanpur police station and the trial was pending before the court of additional chief judicial magistrate of Sultanpur district in UP.
Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi appearing for Arvind Kejriwal told the top court that the complaint was made by a police officer and there was admittedly no video recording or transcript of the speech.
He also said that in the past eight years, not a single member of the public has come forward to suggest that there was any disharmony or hatred due to this statement.
“My discharge has been dismissed. The idea is to arrest me. Now that I am the chief minister, I have to keep going to Uttar Pradesh. This court may be pleased to stay the proceedings,” Singhvi said.
The bench asked if Kejriwal held a public office at the time he made such a comment. Singhvi said that he was not the chief minister then and was campaigning as national convenor of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).
“Why do you have to bring God. In a secular country, leave God alone. He (God) can take care of himself,” the bench observed.
The court note that sometimes during poll campaigning, unintentional things are said but clarified that the words used by the petitioner were “khuda” which refers to God in general and not a particular religion.
Kejriwal, in his petition filed through advocate Vivek Jain said, “Merely mentioning of God cannot amount to promoting enmity and hatred between different classes of citizens.”