Arvind Kejriwal To Appear Before ED Today In Excise Policy Case (image-instagram/arvindkejriwal)
Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief Arvind Kejriwal has been summoned by the enforcement directorate to appear at 11 am today in alleged excise policy case.
Kejriwal was initially summoned in April by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) regarding the case. Enforcement Directorate (ED) for the first time will summon the chief minister to their headquarters. The Aam Aadmi Party has claimed that he may be arrested.
Kejriwal was questioned for nine hours by CBI in April. The development of the case came in hours after Supreme Court rejected the bail petition of his former deputy, Manish Sisodia, the prime accused in the case.
Senior AAP leader and Delhi minister Saurabh Bharadwaj has claimed that this is part of Central government’s tactics to destroy AAP. He also alleged that they are creating fake case to frame the party cheif and destroy the party.
In the past 15 months, CBI has registered cases against 15 persons which includes two AAP leaders. Manish Sisodia, Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Singh and Vijay Nair was previously arrested. While several of bureaucrats and close aids of AAP have been called for questioning by the investigating agencies.
Kejriwal and AAP had denied all charges against them and on Wednesday, the Delhi Chief Minister has alleged that he would be the first person to get arrested as part of BJP’s plan to target top INDIA alliance leaders ahead of 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
AAP being a part of the INDIA alliance, several members of the bloc had condemned the summons.
Meanwhile, BJP has said that massive scam like liquor policy cannot happen without Kejriwal’s approval. The party also claimed that the investigation agencies are working independently and legal process is being followed, reports NDTV.
Arvind Kejriwal is summoned for the irregularities found in the now-scrapped excise policy for 2021-22 alleging that the policy favoured several liquor dealers. Based on the report of the chief secretary of Delhi government, Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena recommended a CBI probe in July last year. ED has submitted the report to the apex court. The liquor policy changes made by the AAP government has resulted in gain of at least Rs 338 crore for wholesale distributors, who has returned the favour by funding election campaign in Goa, as per the chargesheet submitted by ED, say Times of India.
The agency has also alleged that Rs 1,000 crore of proceeds of crime were generated in the liquor scam of which it had established a money trail of over Rs 500 crore.
