Today in Politics: All eyes on HC hearing on Kejriwal plea against ED arrest; Yogi to kick off LS campaign

The Delhi High Court will on Wednesday hear a petition by Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) supremo Arvind Kejriwal challenging his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in an alleged money laundering case linked to the excise policy “scam”.

Kejriwal has rejected the allegations against him in the case as unfounded and baseless. The petition before the high court has sought his immediate release, calling his arrest and the subsequent remand in the ED’s custody as “illegal”.

The AAP chief was arrested on March 21 and subsequently remanded in the ED’s custody till March 28 by a Delhi court. He had moved the high court last week but his request for an urgent hearing was turned down as the court was closed for Holi.

Kejriwal’s arrest has triggered massive protests being held by the AAP leaders and workers in different parts of the country, even as it also seems to have galvanised the Opposition INDIA alliance. The AAP and its INDIA allies have blamed the ruling BJP’s alleged “political vendetta” for the central agency’s action against Kejriwal.

Wednesday is the last day for filing nominations for the first phase of the Lok Sabha elections scheduled for April 19, in which 102 constituencies across 17 states and four Union Territories will go to polls.

All 39 seats of Tamil Nadu, 12 seats of Rajasthan, eight seats of Uttar Pradesh, six seats of Madhya Pradesh, five seats each in Uttarakhand, Assam and Maharashtra, four seats of Bihar, three seats of West Bengal, two seats each in Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya and one seat each in Chhattisgarh, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, Tripura, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Jammu and Kashmir, Lakshadweep and Puducherry will go to the polls in the first phase.

The scrutiny