Delhi HC judge recuses from plea against Kejriwal over court videos

Delhi HC Justice Tejas Karia recused himself from a plea for contempt action against Arvind Kejriwal and others. The petition alleges they illegally recorded and circulated court proceedings, violating rules and damaging the judiciary's image.

Justice Tejas Karia of the Delhi High Court on Wednesday recused himself from hearing a plea that sought contempt proceedings against former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and several others for allegedly uploading videos of court proceedings on social media platforms.

The matter, initially listed before a bench comprising Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Karia, will now be heard by a different bench on Wednesday.

Petition Alleges Unauthorised Recording of Proceedings

The petition, filed as a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) by advocate Vaibhav Singh, raises serious concerns over the unauthorised recording and circulation of court proceedings held on April 13, 2026, before Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma.

Kejriwal had personally appeared that day to argue his plea seeking the judge's recusal in a case linked to the Delhi Liquor Policy probe being conducted by the CBI and ED.

According to the petitioner, the hearing--lasting approximately 45 to 50 minutes--was recorded without permission and subsequently disseminated across platforms such as X, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.

Plea Accuses Leaders of Distorting Narrative

Singh contends that the clips were shared in a manner that distorted the context, created misleading narratives, and damaged the judiciary's image.

The plea specifically names several political leaders, including Digvijaya Singh and Saurabh Bharadwaj, for allegedly posting or amplifying the recordings. It further claims that Kejriwal himself reposted certain clips, thereby contributing to their wider circulation. Other figures mentioned include journalist Ravish Kumar and AAP leaders Manish Sisodia, Sanjay Singh, Sanjeev Jha, Pardeep Sahni, Jarnail Singh, Mukesh Ahlawat, and Vinay Mishra.

Violation of Court Rules Cited

The petition argues that such actions violate the High Court of Delhi Rules for Video Conferencing, 2021 and the Electronic Evidence and Video Conferencing Rules, 2025, both of which expressly prohibit unauthorised recording or sharing of court proceedings.

Calling the incident "grave and unprecedented," the petitioner has urged the court to order the immediate removal of the recordings from all platforms and initiate legal action against those responsible. The matter will now be taken up by another bench for further consideration.

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