ED summon to Kejriwal: AAP alleges conspiracy, BJP welcomes move

NEW DELHI — After the Enforcement Directorate (ED) issued summons to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) said that the Central government wants to break the party by jailing the party’s national convenor.

The BJP welcomed the ED summons and said that Kejriwal will now have to explain why the liquor excise policy was changed and who received the seven per cent commission.

Reacting to the ED summons, Delhi Minister and AAP leader Saurabh Bharadwaj said, “Now we have come to know that Chief Minister Kejriwal has been summoned by the ED. It makes clear that only motto of the Central government is to finish AAP by any means. And for this they are not leaving any stone unturned as they are registering false cases and to jail Kejriwal and finish the AAP.”

Read top news: Andhra Pradesh HC grants interim bail to Chandrababu Naidu

Meanwhile, Delhi BJP Chief Virendra Sachdeva said that the Delhi Chief Minister, who calls himself as an “honest person” is being exposed as his misdeeds are coming to the fore.

Sachdeva added that Kejriwal has been summoned for questioning in the alleged liquor policy case for questioning on November 2.

“Even the Supreme Court today dismissed the bail plea of arrested leader Manish Sisodia and it observed that the Rs 338 crore worth money laundering scam has been established. Now Kejriwal and his friends need to tell why were the changes made in the excise policy. Why the commission was increased from five to 12 per cent. Who got the commission of seven per cent and where this amount of the scam went,” he said.

The remarks came after the ED summoned Kejriwal for the first time for questioning on November 2. He was earlier questioned by the CBI in the liquor policy case in April this year.

Meanwhile, even the Supreme Court on Monday dismissed former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia’s bail plea.

Read more: Delhi HC denies bail to Sisodia, others in excise policy case

A bench of Justice Sanjiv Khanna and S.N.V Bhatti delivered the judgment denying bail to Sisodia in the alleged Delhi liquor policy scam.

The apex court has directed that Sisodia’s trial should be completed within six to eight months. The bench further added that within three months, if the trial proceeds slowly, Sisodia can file an application for bail again.

Justice Khanna while delivering the judgement said that even as many questions remain unanswered, one aspect with regard to the transfer of Rs 338 crore is tentatively established.