NEW DELHI: In a significant legal development, the Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court, D.K. Upadhyaya, has officially declined a request by AAP Convenor Arvind Kejriwal to transfer the CBI’s plea in the excise policy case to a different bench. The representation, filed by Kejriwal and other accused including Manish Sisodia, sought to move the matter away from Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma, citing apprehensions over impartiality.
Chief Justice Upadhyaya maintained that Justice Sharma is presiding over the CBI’s petition against the trial court’s discharge order in strict accordance with the judicial roster. Sources indicate that the Chief Justice found no administrative grounds for a transfer, clarifying that any decision regarding recusal remains the sole prerogative of the judge concerned. The CBI’s petition is now set to proceed before Justice Sharma’s bench this Monday.
The transfer request stemmed from a February 27 trial court decision that discharged Kejriwal, Sisodia, and 21 others, while simultaneously criticizing the CBI for a case that “stood discredited.” However, on March 9, Justice Sharma stayed the trial court’s recommendations for departmental action against the CBI’s investigating officer. Kejriwal’s representation argued that the judge’s “past conduct” and her prima facie observation that the discharge order was “erroneous”—made on the first day of the revision petition—created a reasonable apprehension that the hearing would not be neutral.
The AAP leadership further contended that Justice Sharma had previously denied relief to several high-profile accused in related cases, including K. Kavitha and Sanjay Singh, noting that some of those judgments were later set aside by the Supreme Court. Despite these arguments, the High Court administration has stood by the current roster, ensuring the central agency’s challenge against the mass discharge will be heard as scheduled.
