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AAP chief Kejriwal, Sisodia and Pathak had opted to remain legally unrepresented before Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma after she had refused to recuse herself from hearing the CBI’s revision plea challenging the discharge of 23 accused in the liquor policy case. (File Photo)
After voluntarily refusing to appoint legal counsel to represent them in the excise policy case before the Delhi High Court, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders Arvind Kejriwal, Manish Sisodia and Durgesh Pathak Monday reported their legal representatives before the court.
Vakalatnamas, a document authorising a lawyer to represent a litigant before court, have been filed by advocates Mudit Jain, Vivek Jain, Karan Sharma to represent the three. The three advocates have represented the AAP leaders in the past during proceedings in the trial court and the Delhi HC.
AAP chief Kejriwal, Sisodia and Pathak had opted to remain legally unrepresented before Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma after she had refused to recuse herself from hearing the CBI’s revision plea challenging the discharge of 23 accused in the liquor policy case.
The leaders had expressed apprehension of bias if Justice Sharma decides the case, citing that her children are on the Union government’s advocates’ panels and are assigned cases by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, who is representing CBI in this case. The leaders had also objected to Justice Sharma’s alleged “public association with the RSS’s legal front Akhil Bharatiya Adhivakta Parishad”.
The three leaders’ decision to remain legally unrepresented before Justice Sharma, as claimed by them, was a “satyagraha” move.
On May 14, Justice Sharma initiated suo motu criminal contempt against the three AAP leaders, and four others, and simultaneously transferred the CBI and ED’s pleas in the alleged liquor policy scam out of her court. The matters are now before Justice Manoj Jain.
On May 19, the HC issued fresh notice to the trio.
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Taken up briefly on Monday, the court posted the matter to July 16, when it will draw up a schedule for hearing.
Sohini Ghosh is a Senior Correspondent at The Indian Express. Previously based in Ahmedabad covering Gujarat, she recently moved to the New Delhi bureau, where she primarily covers legal developments at the Delhi High Court Professional Profile Background: An alumna of the Asian College of Journalism (ACJ), she previously worked with ET NOW before joining The Indian Express. Core Beats: Her reporting is currently centered on the Delhi High Court, with a focus on high-profile constitutional disputes, disputes over intellectual property, criminal and civil cases, issues of human rights and regulatory law (especially in the areas of technology and healthcare). Earlier Specialty: In Gujarat, she was known for her rigorous coverage in the beats of crime, law and policy, and social justice issues, including the 2002 riot cases, 2008 serial bomb blast case, 2016 flogging of Dalits in Una, among others. She has extensively covered health in the state, including being part of the team that revealed the segregation of wards at the state’s largest government hospital on lines of faith in April 2020. With Ahmedabad being a UNESCO heritage city, she has widely covered urban development and heritage issues, including the redevelopment of the Sabarmati Ashram Recent Notable Articles (Late 2025) Her recent reporting from the Delhi High Court covers major political, constitutional, corporate, and public-interest legal battles: High-Profile Case Coverage She has extensively covered the various legal battles - including for compensation under the aegis of North East Delhi Riots Claims Commission - pertaining to the 2020 northeast Delhi riots, as well as 1984 anti-Sikh riots. She has also led coverage at the intersection of technology and governance, and its impact on the citizenry, from, and beyond courtrooms — such as the government’s stakeholder consultations for framing AI-Deepfake policy. Signature Style Sohini is recognized for her sustained reporting from courtrooms and beyond. She specialises in breaking down dense legal arguments to make legalese accessible for readers. Her transition from Gujarat to Delhi has seen her expand her coverage on regulatory, corporate and intellectual property law, while maintaining a strong commitment to human rights and lacuna in the criminal justice system. X (Twitter): @thanda_ghosh ... Read More
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