Arvind Kejriwal agrees to appear before ED in Delhi excise policy case
New Delhi/IBNS: After receiving eighth summons from the Enforcement Directorate (ED), Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has agreed to appear before the central probe agency for quizzing in the excise policy case, media reports said.
Kejriwal will appear before ED via video conference after March 12, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) stated.
Kejriwal had previously skipped the seventh summons, stating that he would only appear before the Enforcement Directorate if ordered by the court to do so.
The anti-corruption agency had filed a complaint before a Delhi court against Kejriwal for repeatedly skipping summonses over the past few months.
A Delhi court then directed the Chief Minister to appear before the court on March 16.
The probe agency is investigating the Delhi excise policy which has handed over liquor shop licences to private players.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) alleges that liquor companies and middlemen were "actively involved in irregularities in the framing and implementation" of the excise policy.
Former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister and Kejriwal's colleague in the party, Manish Sisodia, is already in jail in the same case as the prime accused.
In April last year, the CBI questioned Kejriwal as a witness for nine hours, after which he slammed the agency. The ED has been summoning him since November 2.