NEW DELHI, APRIL 15: AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal has moved a fresh affidavit before the Delhi High Court, providing new details to support his request for Justice Swarn Kanta Sharma to recuse herself from the excise policy case. The filing claims that the judge’s son is currently empanelled as a lawyer for the Central Government and has received thousands of case assignments through the Union’s institutional legal framework.
The affidavit follows a tense hearing earlier this week regarding the CBI’s challenge to a trial court order that discharged Kejriwal and others. The AAP leader asserted that the professional ties between the judge’s immediate family and the Central Government create a reasonable apprehension concerning the neutrality of the proceedings, particularly as the prosecution is being led by the CBI.
“A total of 2,487 cases were marked to the son of the Hon’ble Justice in the year 2023, 1,784 cases in 2024 and 1,633 cases in 2025,” the affidavit stated. Kejriwal maintained that these figures demonstrate a relationship with the government that is “live, continuing and substantial,” which he argued gives rise to a serious appearance of a conflict of interest.
The AAP leader clarified that his plea does not allege actual bias but rests on the legal standard of how a fair-minded litigant would perceive the situation. He also raised concerns over the conduct of previous proceedings, noting that the court continued hearings beyond standard hours and issued directions in the main matter while the recusal application was still pending.
Kejriwal declared that the continuation of the case before the current bench would impact the appearance of justice. He affirmed that the matter should be heard by a different bench to preserve the integrity of the judicial process.
