Top Indian opposition leader given bail by the Supreme Court enabling him to campaign in elections

By ASHOK SHARMA
Associated Press

NEW DELHI (AP) — A top Indian opposition leader has been granted interim bail by the Supreme Court nearly seven weeks after his arrest in a bribery case. The court ordered Arvind Kejriwal’s temporary release enabling him to campaign in the country’s national election until the voting ends on June 1. Opposition parties called the arrest a political move by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government against his rivals during the election. Kejriwal is the top elected official in the city of New Delhi. The federal Enforcement Directorate, India’s main financial investigation agency, arrested him in March accusing him and his party colleagues of accepting 1 billion rupees ($12 million) in bribes from liquor contractors nearly two years ago. They deny the charges.