NEW DELHI: Following Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s fresh plea in Delhi High Court seeking no coercive action against him in connection with the excise policy case, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday said that Delhi CM, who began his entire political career on the principle that he will “fight corruption”, is now “running away” from an investigation into a “corruption scam.”
BJP leader Nalin Kohli said that CM Arvind Kejriwal has chosen to ignore or run away from eight summons so far. “What an irony that Arvind Kejriwal, who began his entire political career on the principle that he will fight corruption, is now running away from an investigation into a corruption scam. He is the CM of Delhi, and under his leadership, his ministers function. Two of his ministers are in jail without bail for an investigation into the liquor scam. CM Arvind Kejriwal has chosen to ignore or run away from 8 summons so far… But the question is, what is it he is so scared of that he is running away from joining the investigation?” Kohli said.
Delhi BJP president Virendraa Sachdeva said that the Delhi CM, who calls himself ‘honest’, should go to the agency and put forward his situation.
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“Yesterday, the court made it clear that he (Arvind Kejriwal) should appear before ED, despite that he is acting like that. I think that he is accepting his involvement in the liquor scam…Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, who calls himself ‘honest’ should go to the agency and put forward his situation. Why is he behaving like a coward?” Sachdeva said.
BJP leader Bansuri Swaraj asked the Delhi CM why he was running away from the investigation. “CM Arvind Kejriwal was a leader who used to show off his honesty and advise everyone to join the investigation. If he is staunch honest then, why is he running away from the investigation? The court has asked him why he is not joining the investigation,” she said.
Earlier, Aam Aadmi Party asserted that the Enforcement Directorate is a “political tool” of the BJP , adding that ED is being used to “finish the opposition.” Delhi Minister and AAP leader Atishi said that ED had summons Kejriwal not to be a part of the investigation but to arrest him.
“It is very clear that ED is no more an independent investigating agency. The ED is a political tool of the BJP. Today, ED is being used to finish the Opposition. ED is not summoning Arvind Kejriwal to be a part of the investigation but to arrest him – so that he can’t campaign in elections…Had arrest not been their goal, they could have said so before the court,” Atishi said.
Meanwhile, Delhi Minister and AAP leader Gopal Rai said that they had approached the court for relief against the BJP’s intentions that it wants to fulfil through the ED.
“It has been clear since the first day that ED is not bothered about questioning. Questioning has been going on for the last two years, raids have taken place at thousands of locations but they have no evidence till date. Repeated summons are being sent so that Arvind Kejriwal can be arrested in one way or the other,” Rai said.
Earlier, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal moved a fresh plea in the Delhi High Court seeking no coercive action against him in connection with the Excise policy case.
The now-scrapped excise policy was aimed “at revitalizing the city’s flagging liquor business” and replacing a sales-volume-based regime with a licence fee for traders.
Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena had ordered a probe into alleged irregularities in the policy. AAP has accused Saxena’s predecessor, Anil Baijal, of sabotaging the move with a few last-minute changes that resulted in lower-than-expected revenues.
Two senior AAP leaders, Manish Sisodia and Sanjay Singh, are in judicial custody in the case. Sisodia, who was the then Delhi Deputy Chief Minister, was arrested by the CBI on February 26 following several rounds of questioning. On October 5, ED arrested Sanjay Singh, who is a Rajya Sabha member. (ANI)
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