Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s wife, Sunita Kejriwal.
New Delhi:
Arvind Kejriwal will make a big revelation in the alleged Delhi liquor policy scam that has roiled the Aam Aadmi Party, or AAP, and led to the Chief Minister’s arrest just weeks before the 2024 Lok Sabha election, his wife Sunita Kejriwal said Wednesday morning, in a brief riposte to her husband’s critics.
Mrs Kejriwal said the Chief Minister – arrested by the Enforcement Directorate last week and remanded to judicial custody till April 9 – would reveal the location of “money from the so-called liquor scam”.
She also hit out at the Bharatiya Janata Party, or BJP, over attacks on Mr Kejriwal after he issued directions to Atishi and Saurabh Bhardwaj, the city’s Public Works and Health Ministers.
“Arvindji told me that in the past two years they (referring to probe agencies like the ED) conducted 250 raids in this so-called liquor policy case. He told me that they are searching for the money from this so-called scam… but so far they have not recovered a single paise of illegal money,” she said.
“They raided (ex-Deputy Chief Minister Manish) Sisodia… they raided (Rajya Sabha MP) Sanjay Singh… they raided (former Health Minister Satyendar) Jain. But they did not find even one paise.”
Mr Sisodia and Mr Singh were both arrested last year in connection with the alleged liquor policy scam; the former has been in jail since February and the latter since October. Mr Kejriwal was taken into custody in dramatic circumstances last week after a Delhi court refused protection from arrest.
The Chief Minister’s arrest triggered furious protests across the city. Opposition parties, including the Congress and Bengal’s ruling Trinamool, have spoken out in support of the AAP leader.
“They raided us (Mr Kejriwal’s home) also and found only Rs 73,000. So where is all this money from the so-called liquor scam? Arvindji has said he will reveal everything in court (tomorrow).”
“The whole country will bear witness. He said he has proof,” she said, adding that her husband had given her a message to the people of Delhi. “He said, ‘My body is in jail… but my spirit is with you’.”
She also slammed BJP leaders over criticism of the Delhi Chief Minister’s orders from jail; on Monday he had directed Ms Atishi to solve water supply and sewerage issues in parts of the city and, on Tuesday, ordered Mr Bhardwaj to ensure a supply of free medicines at Delhi government clinics.
Both orders have been red-flagged by the BJP, which claimed they had been “scripted” to generate sympathy for the jailed Arvind Kejriwal. Senior BJP leader Manjinder Singh Sirsa said Tuesday he had filed a complaint with the ED and Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena over the “fabricated” orders.
READ | “Unconstitutional”: BJP Leader Slams Arvind Kejriwal’s Orders From Jail
“This is totally illegal and unconstitutional… and a criminal conspiracy against the people of Delhi and the office of the Chief Minister. Kejriwalji is in ED custody and lacks the legal capacity to issue such directives without court permission, which has not been granted,” he said in a post on X.
“I went to meet Arvindji in jail yesterday evening. He has diabetes… sugar level is an issue. But he remains determined. Two days earlier he sent an order to Atishiji. Tell me what wrong he did… should he not be aware of people’s problems? But now the centre has attacked your Chief Minister.”
“Does the centre want to destroy Delhi?” she asked.
Meanwhile, Mr Kejriwal is in the Delhi High Court today to challenge his arrest. Arguing for the Chief Minister, senior lawyer Abhishek Manu Singhvi said the ED’s actions had violated his human rights.
“Arrest without interrogation shows the current action is politically motivated,” Mr Singhvi told the court, emphasising that the ED had “failed to prove the crime” of money laundering.
NDTV Explains | Why Did The Enforcement Directorate Arrest Arvind Kejriwal
The ED believes the now-scrapped policy provided an impossibly high profit margin of nearly 185 per cent for retailers and 12 per cent for wholesalers. Of the latter, six per cent – over Rs 600 crore – was recovered as bribes and the money was allegedly used to fund the Goa and Punjab poll campaigns.
The ED has labelled the Chief Minister as a key conspirator in this case, but Mr Kejriwal and party colleagues arrested in this matter – ex-Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh, and former Health Minister Satyendar Jain – have all denied the charges.
The AAP and the opposition have hit out at the BJP-led central government for using central agencies, like the ED, to target rivals and critics before the general election. The AAP has criticised Mr Kejriwal’s arrest on grounds it was timed to interfere with his plans to campaign for the party.
The BJP has dismissed claims it uses central agencies as described by the opposition.
NDTV is now available on WhatsApp channels. Click on the link to get all the latest updates from NDTV on your chat.