Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) minister Atishi made damning accusations on Tuesday, alleging that the Enforcement Directorate (ED) is resorting to intimidation tactics against witnesses to fabricate statements against AAP leaders, aiming to concoct cases against them. During a press conference, she asserted, “ED is coercing and threatening individuals to provide false statements against AAP leaders in the excise policy case,” further stating that the ongoing raids on AAP leaders are a blatant attempt to silence the party.
ED sources dismissed Atishi”s claims as “baseless” and hinted at potential legal action against the AAP leader.
Three AAP leaders—Manish Sisodia, Satyendra Jain, and Sanjay Singh—continue to be in jail on corruption charges and their bail pleas repeatedly rejected by different courts.
According to Atishi, the ED”s case against AAP relies heavily on coerced statements extracted from accused-turned-approvers. She emphasised that despite relentless efforts over the past two years, not a single rupee of allegedly illicit wealth has been recovered from any AAP leader. “Despite numerous raids spanning two years, the ED has failed to produce concrete evidence. Even the court has repeatedly demanded substantial evidence,” she declared.
Atishi highlighted discrepancies between statements made during questioning and those presented in court, citing instances where witnesses admitted to being pressured into providing false testimony. She recounted instances of witnesses being threatened, including one who alleged that his daughter would be harmed if he did not testify against AAP leaders. Atishi claimed that the ED deliberately deleted audio recordings from interrogation sessions, undermining the authenticity of their probe.
Asserting the necessity of audio-visual recording during interrogation sessions as per Supreme Court mandates, Atishi challenged the ED to disclose the interrogation videos with intact audio. She further alleged instances of physical abuse by ED officials, such as one witness suffering a ruptured eardrum due to a slap. Atishi demanded transparency from the ED and challenged them to confront the allegations in court.
Meanwhile, the ED”s raids on Tuesday targeted the premises of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal”s personal secretary and individuals associated with the AAP in connection with a money laundering case, covering a total of 12 locations in Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR).
