Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting Anurag Thakur, on October 5, took potshots at the Aam Aadmi Party. He also targeted the AAP supremo, Arvind Kejriwal, and said, “People to whom Arvind Kejriwal issued a certificate of honesty are in jail .” Anurag Thakur alleged that Arvind Kejriwal could be next in line.
“People are laughing at Arvind Kejriwal. They can see the tension on his face. The Deputy CM is in jail, the Health Minister is in jail, they are people who came to the front by raising the slogans of India Against Corruption but are now involved in corruption,” Anurag Thakur said.
“The kingpin is still out now. His number will also come. Investigation is underway. All those people to whom Arvind Kejriwal issued a certificate of honesty are in jail for a year”, he added.
Meanwhile, Delhi Chief Minister and AAP Supremo Arvind Kejriwal condemned Sanjay Singh’s arrest, claiming that it betrayed nervousness from the BJP ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.
“The arrest of Sanjay Singh is completely illegal. This shows Modi ji’s nervousness. They will arrest many more Opposition leaders till the elections” Arvind Kejriwal said.
The AAP MP’s arrest triggered sharp reactions from the leaders of the INDIA alliance.
Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Manoj Jha said, “It is not the ED that has arrested Sanjay Singh, he has been arrested by the unit of BJP that comprises ED-IT-CBI. Dark days have begun…In this era of dictatorship, jo dar gaya wo mar gaya. The dictators themselves are scared. This fear will be retaliated against soon”.The AAP is also set to hold a protest outside the BJP headquarters on October 5 opposing Sanjay Singh’s arrest.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court will today hear the bail plea of AAP leader Manish Sisodia in liquor policy irregularities matter.
In today’s hearing, the ED will reply to the Supreme Court’s question about why a political party has not been made accused in the matter despite the fact that the political party is said to be the beneficiary of this.
Reacting to the arrest of AAP MP Sanjay Singh in the Delhi excise policy case, BJP Spokesperson Sambit Patra on October 5 accused the AAP of indulging in “corruption openly” and of doing “politics” when they are caught on it.
“AAP MP Sanjay Singh has been arrested by the ED yesterday in a liquor scam case… It is AAP’s character to do corruption openly and when they are caught, they start politics over it,” Sambit Patra said in a press conference in Bhubaneswar.
The BJP spokesperson said the culprits in the Delhi excise policy case will be caught in ascending order depending on the magnitude of their fraud.
The arrest of Sanjay Singh is the second high-profile arrest in the case after former Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia was arrested.
The federal agency on October 4 morning raided the residence of AAP leader Sanjay Singh in connection with the now-cancelled liquor excise policy in the national capital. The development followed closely on the heels of the ED’s raid on the premises belonging to two of Sanjay Singh’s alleged close aides in the same context.
Sanjay Singh’s father, Dinesh Singh, accused ED of doing the bidding of their “masters”.
“They (ED) did what their masters told them. They did not find anything at my residence. When you don’t find anything, the search takes time. They did not find anything so it took time,” Dinesh Singh said.
Reacting to the arrest, AAP MP Sandeep Pathak alleged that the case was nothing but a “process to break and defeat AAP illegally”.
“These are testing times. AAP will rise stronger. This has been going on for 15 months now. They raided thousands of locations and tortured people. Nothing has come out and nothing will come out. They have arrested an AAP leader in connection with a policy that has benefitted the Government,” Sandeep Pathak said
“Why are they doing this? After the formation of AAP, Delhi and Punjab slipped out of the hands of BJP. AAP then entered Gujarat & other states. They know that it is difficult to defeat us honestly & legally. So, this is a process to break and defeat AAP illegally. Ultimately there will be justice. We trust God, the Court and the public,” he added.
As per the ED claims, Sanjay Singh and his partners played a part in the Delhi Government’s decision to give licenses to alcohol shops and merchants in 2020, causing losses to the State exchequer and violating anti-corruption laws.
(with inputs from ANI)
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