Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was arrested at late night on Thursday by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with his involvement in the alleged liquor policy scam. The Delhi High Court has reserved its order on the Aam Aadmi leader’s plea challenging his arrest. The arrest happened hours after the Delhi High Court declined to grant interim protection to the AAP chief regarding the summons issued by the federal agency in the liquor policy scam case. Kejriwal, who is the first sitting minister to be arrested, has denied the charges. Up until now, the Delhi Chief Minister had evaded nearly nine summons from the Enforcement Directorate concerning the money laundering case.
The Enforcement Directorate presented Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in the Rouse Avenue court on Friday, asserting that Kejriwal was the mastermind and primary conspirator behind the Delhi liquor policy scam. Seeking a 10-day remand for the Chief Minister, ASG SV Raju informed the court that Kejriwal was implicated in the utilisation of illicit proceeds and directly participated in crafting the policy. This excise policy was structured in a manner conducive to soliciting bribes. Vijay Nair acted as the intermediary between the Aam Aadmi Party and the south cartel, with a prominent figure being K Kavitha, who had already been arrested.
Opposition leaders have condemned the incident, with many accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) of employing central agencies vindictively. The Aam Aadmi Party, as part of the INDIA bloc, a coalition of opposition parties, is participating in the upcoming general elections, presenting a unified front against the BJP.
डरा हुआ तानाशाह, एक मरा हुआ लोकतंत्र बनाना चाहता है।
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) March 21, 2024
मीडिया समेत सभी संस्थाओं पर कब्ज़ा, पार्टियों को तोड़ना, कंपनियों से हफ्ता वसूली, मुख्य विपक्षी दल का अकाउंट फ्रीज़ करना भी ‘असुरी शक्ति’ के लिए कम था, तो अब चुने हुए मुख्यमंत्रियों की गिरफ्तारी भी आम बात हो गई है।
INDIA इसका…
Ahead of #Elections2024, driven by fear of a decade of failures and the imminent defeat, the Fascist BJP Govt sinks to despicable depths by arresting Hon'ble Delhi CM @ArvindKejriwal, following the unjust targeting of brother @HemantSorenJMM.
— M.K.Stalin (@mkstalin) March 21, 2024
Not a single BJP leader faces…
Kejriwal’s arrest occurred shortly after the top leadership of the Congress, the primary opposition party of the country, accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of financially crippling the party by freezing its bank accounts due to an ongoing tax dispute.
Kejriwal opted to withdraw his plea at the Supreme Court contesting his arrest. Subsequently, he was presented before a special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court by the ED on Friday, seeking his remand for further interrogation. Arvind Kejriwal, a leader of the AAP, has become the first sitting Chief Minister to be arrested.
Kejriwal has joined the ranks of opposition leaders who have been arrested by central agencies in recent times. Additionally, two of his former ministers, Manish Sisodia and Satyendar Jain, along with a Rajya Sabha member from his party, Sanjay Singh, are also currently in jail.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) informed the court that:
- Vijay Nair, closely associated with Arvind Kejriwal, operated near Kejriwal’s residence and collaborated with the Chief Minister in soliciting kickbacks from liquor barons in exchange for policy favours.
- Kejriwal allegedly demanded ₹100 crore from certain individuals associated with the South group for the Punjab election.
- Kejriwal personally met with Kavitha and proposed collaboration on the liquor policy.
- Proceeds of crime amounting to approximately ₹45 crores from the South group were utilised by the Aam Aadmi Party during the Goa campaign in 2021-22.
- The ED claimed to have corroborative evidence supporting their statements. The agency reported that Goa MLAs admitted to receiving cash.
