Amit Shah statement on Kejriwal bail questions intent of SC judges: Kapil Sibal

Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal on Thursday hit out at Home Minister Amit Shah over his reported "special treatment" remarks on the interim bail granted to Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, saying it was an "objectionable statement" that questioned the intention of the Supreme Court judges.

Sibal's remarks came after Shah, while referring to the interim bail granted by the Supreme Court to Kejriwal, reportedly said many in the country believed he was given special treatment.

The Supreme Court on Thursday steered clear of the political talk about it having made an exception for Kejriwal in granting him interim bail to campaign for the Lok Sabha polls, but said "critical analysis of the judgement is welcome".

Addressing a press conference in the national capital, Sibal said, "Shah has made an objectionable statement and questioned the intention of the Supreme Court judges. He has very cleverly stated that many people are saying the Supreme Court's decision to grant interim bail to Kejriwal in the excise policy case is akin to him getting special treatment."

"He (Shah) has said 'people are saying'. If people are saying and you don't believe it, why say it? If people say and you believe it, only then will you make the statement," said Sibal, who is also a senior advocate.

Sibal said it is important to spell out the laws in light of the statement. "If someone is convicted but gets a stay from the court, he or she can file a nomination and get elected. If there is a charge sheet against anyone, a person can campaign and also file a nomination, like Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh is doing," the Rajya Sabha MP said.

"One who only has allegations against him cannot campaign, what kind of a statement is this?" Sibal said, hitting out at Shah. "He probably does not have knowledge of the law, otherwise he would not have made the statement."

On another statement by Shah, Sibal said, "He (Shah) says 'if we win 400 seats, we will take back PoK'. What if you don't get that many seats, won't you take back PoK? We want you to take it back. Firstly, you should take back those 4,000 km that China has taken away..."

Asked about the alleged assault on Aam Aadmi Party MP Swati Maliwal at Kejriwal's residence, Sibal said, "Why is he (Shah) worried about this (Maliwal assault case)? It's an internal matter of the AAP. You think about Prajwal (Revanna), why don't you give statements on that? That is the internal matter of JD(S), you are silent there and the prime minister is also silent."