Arvind Kejriwal : Trouble continues for Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) supremo Arvind Kejriwal as a fresh Public Interest Litigation (PIL) has been filed in the Delhi High Court seeking his removal from the post of Chief Minister.
The petition, filed by Hindu Sena President, Vishnu Gupta, says that the situation after Kejriwal’s recent arrest by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with the money laundering case related to the alleged excise policy scam constitutes a breach of constitutional trust mandated by the Constitution.
Kejriwal’s ED custody was extended till April 1 by a Delhi court on Thursday, as it held that there were “sufficient reasons”. The high court on Thursday also dismissed a similar PIL seeking Kejriwal’s removal as the Chief Minister, saying there is no scope for judicial interference, and that it is for the other wing of the government to examine the same in accordance with the law.
Gupta’s petition, however, argues that under Article 164 of the Constitution, a Chief Minister’s dismissal is warranted if they act in a manner that undermines the rule of law or breaches constitutional trust. It alleges that since Kejriwal’s arrest, the government of the National Capital Territory of Delhi has failed to convene cabinet meetings, thereby disrupting the constitutional framework and hindering the functioning of governance. The crux of the PIL revolves around whether the Governor possesses the discretion to dismiss a Chief Minister in an extraordinary situation such as arrest, given the Constitution’s silence on the matter.
