Arvind Kejriwal targets judge in liquor policy case hearing, alleges of attending 'RSS linked-events' 4 times

Amid the hearing of the liquor policy case, former Delhi Chief Minister and AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal on Monday (April 13, 2026) alleged that Delhi High Court judge Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma had attended an event hosted by Adhivakta Parishad, a lawyer’s body linked with the RSS, four times. Kejriwal also demanded that Justice Sharma be removed from the hearing of a CBI petition related to the case.

Arvind Kejriwal argued that there was a serious and genuine concern that the proceedings before the judge might not be impartial. He stated his opposition to the BJP-RSS ideology and described the Delhi liquor policy case as politically motivated.

"There’s a lawyer’s body, Adhivakta Parishad. It is an ideological body of the BJP and RSS. Your honour has attended its events four times. The ideology they follow is something we strongly oppose, and we oppose it openly. This case is political," said Kejriwal in court.

Kejriwal alleges possible bias

In his submissions, Kejriwal alleged possible bias and questioned whether a judge’s association with events linked to a particular ideology could affect fairness. Citing Supreme Court observations, he said, “In a functional democracy, perception matters,” and also invoked past comments describing the CBI as a “caged parrot,” arguing that investigative agencies must maintain independence and dispel perceptions of bias. He further claimed that the court itself had observed that the CBI was “subject to political bias.”

Kejriwal contended that if a judge participates in events tied to a specific ideology, it could create reasonable apprehension for an accused with opposing views, questioning whether “If I am from the opposite ideology, will I get justice?”

He also alleged urgency in hearings that include Opposition leaders, and stated that cases involving political opponents of the nation were rushed at a faster rate, and that there was undue haste in hearings and filings.

In the Delhi liquor policy case, Arvind Kejriwal alleged that the High Court had effectively accepted most of the submissions made by the Enforcement Directorate and the Central Bureau of Investigation, stating that “every prayer by ED and CBI has turned into a judgment, except in one case.”

However, on February 27, the trial court cleared Kejriwal, former Deputy CM Manish Sisodia, and 21 others, sharply criticising the CBI and stating that its case could not withstand judicial scrutiny and was entirely discredited.