Court seeks Kejriwal’s response to Jaitley’s charge that he filed false affidavit in defamation case
The finance minister claimed that the Delhi chief Minister had lied when he said he had not asked counsel Ram Jethmalani to use derogatory words.
The Delhi High Court on Wednesday asked Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to file a response to Finance Minister Arun Jaitley’s plea seeking action against him for allegedly submitting a false affidavit. Jaitley had filed an application claiming that the Aam Aadmi Party chief had not been truthful in his affidavit in the defamation case when he claimed he had not asked his former counsel Ram Jethmalani to use derogatory words.
Jethmalani had opposed Kejriwal’s statement and withdrawn from the case. He no longer represents the chief minister.
Justice Manmohan on Wednesday issued a notice to Kejriwal and asked him to respond to Jaitley’s application within four weeks. He said the matter would be heard next on December 11.
Senior advocates Rajiv Nayar and Sandeep Sethi, appearing for Jaitley, urged the court to allow them to file a criminal complaint against Kejriwal for filing a false affidavit. On May 18, Jethmalani had called the finance minister a “crook” in court, after which Jaitley had filed a fresh Rs 10-crore suit against Kejriwal.
The 2015 case is related to Kejriwal’s claims that Jaitley had misused funds and his position while he was the president of the Delhi and District Cricket Association. Jaitley had filed a civil and criminal defamation case against Kejriwal and a few other AAP leaders in 2016. He has also sought Rs 10 crore in damages.