The Delhi High Court on Wednesday rebuked Sandeep Kumar, a former AAP MLA, for filing a petition seeking the removal of Arvind Kejriwal from his post of Delhi Chief Minister, and imposed a cost of ₹50,000 on him for “making a mockery of the system”. This is the third such petition that has been filed seeking similar directives.
A Bench of acting Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora observed that Mr. Kumar was aware of the court’s dismissal of earlier petitions seeking the ousting of Mr. Kejriwal, but had, despite that, filed an identical plea to “gain publicity”.
“This is not like a James Bond movie where we can have sequels. The Lieutenant-Governor will take a call on this. You are trying to involve us in a political thicket, that is all,” the court told Mr. Kumar.
The judges also reminded him that the court cannot remove or dismiss Mr. Kejriwal from the post of Chief Minister or declare a breakdown of constitutional machinery in the State.
“It is for the other organs of the State to examine the said aspect in accordance with the law,” the Bench reiterated.
When the counsel for the former AAP leader asked the court where his client should go if he cannot access his government as per the Constitution, the Bench retorted, “Please don’t make political speeches over here.”
In his plea, Mr. Kumar had said that after his arrest, Mr. Kejriwal had “incurred an incapacity” to carry out the functions of the Chief Minister as per the Constitution, adding that his “unavailability” had complicated the constitutional mechanism, as he cannot perform his duties from prison.
Two weeks ago, the High Court had rejected the first petition seeking Mr. Kejriwal’s removal, noting that there was “no scope for judicial interference”. On April 4, it rejected the second such plea.
