Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal could be arrested on Thursday in a possible raid on his home by the Enforcement Directorate, claimed the Aam Aadmi Party, a day after he skipped the summons issued by the law enforcement agency.
In a video message posted on X, formerly called Twitter, Kejriwal alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party is seeking his arrest on fabricated charges relating to the Delhi liquor policy case.
“The truth is that there was no corruption,” Kejriwal said in the video. “My biggest asset is my honesty and they [the BJP] want to dent it. My lawyers have told me that summons sent to me are illegal. BJP’s aim is not to probe me, but not to let me campaign for Lok Sabha elections. They want to call me on the pretext of investigation and then arrest me.”
The central agency had issued summons to Kejriwal on December 22 to appear for questioning on January 3 in connection with the liquor policy case.
This was the third time the central agency had summoned the Aam Aadmi Party chief in the matter. Kejriwal had skipped the last two summons as well.
In his statement, Kejriwal said that central agencies investigating corruption allegations have not been able to find any tainted money. “If there has actually been corruption, where have all the crores gone?” he asked. “Has all the money vanished into thin air?”
The Aam Aadmi Party chief also questioned the timing of the summons, asking why it had been sent ahead of the Lok Sabha elections even though the agencies have been investigating the case for over two years.
Kejriwal alleged that the BJP is not going after the corrupt but just trying to break up parties using central agencies so that it can get their leaders to join it.
“There have been several instances of Opposition leaders facing cases by ED, CBI or have serious allegations against them which are then closed or put in cold storage when they join the BJP,” he claimed. “...Manish Sisodia, Sanjay Singh and Vijay Nair are not in jail because they engaged in corruption but because they refused to join the BJP.”
Road to CM’s home blocked: AAP
Since Wednesday, several AAP leaders have claimed that the Enforcement Directorate could raid Kejriwal’s home. They have also said that roads leading to the Delhi chief minister’s residence have been blocked by the Delhi Police, reported NDTV.
Visuals shared by ANI showed heightened security deployment outside the Aam Aadmi Party leader’s home.
“News coming in that ED is going to raid Arvind Kejriwal’s residence tomorrow morning,” Delhi minister Atishi wrote on social media. “Arrest likely.”
Similar posts were also made by party leaders Saurabh Bhardwaj, Jasmine Shah and Sandeep Pathak.
AAP’s chief national spokesperson Priyanka Kakkar told ANI that several Bharatiya Janata Party leaders have also claimed that Kejriwal will be arrested.
“Three of our leaders are in jail for a long time without any evidence against them and for the sheer reason that the BJP cannot compete with Arvind Kejriwal in policies,” said Kakkar.
She was referring to Manish Sisodia and Sanjay Singh who are currently in jail in connection with the liquor policy case. Another leader, Satyendar Jain, is in jail in connection with a money-laundering case.
Meanwhile, Shah said that Kejriwal is ready to cooperate with the legal process.
“It is clear that they [BJP] want to finish the Aam Aadmi Party and arrest Arvind Kejriwal before Lok Sabha elections,” he said. “Till now, all summons served to him are illegal.”
After skipping the Enforcement Directorate’s third summons, Kejriwal said on Wednesday that the summons against him were motivated and issued for “vexatious considerations”.
“Summons appear to be in the nature of fishing and roving enquiry as it does not specify whether I am being summoned as an individual or in my official capacity as chief minister of Delhi or as [the] national convenor of AAP,” Kejriwal claimed in a written response to the central agency.
The chief minister also said that the central agency has refused to respond to his legal objections to the summons.
He said that there have been several cases in the past where the Enforcement Directorate had given a detailed explanation and response to queries raised by a person. In his case, however, Kejriwal said that the central agency refused to even acknowledge the receipt of the detailed submissions.
The Aam Aadmi Party leader also cited Rajya Sabha polls and Republic Day celebrations in January as reasons for not appearing for questioning before the investigating agency.
Also read: A ‘liquor scam’ has put AAP leaders in jail. But has it dented the party’s image in Delhi?
ED allegations
The Enforcement Directorate’s case is based on a first information report registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation that has alleged irregularities in the Delhi government’s now-scrapped excise policy.
The Central Bureau of Investigation and the Enforcement Directorate have alleged that the Aam Aadmi Party modified the liquor excise policy to ensure a 12% profit margin for wholesalers and a nearly 185% profit margin for retailers.
The Enforcement Directorate has also claimed that members of a so-called South Group had paid at least Rs 100 crore in kickbacks to leaders of the Aam Aadmi Party through businessman Vijay Nair.
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