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New Delhi:
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal could be arrested in the morning following a raid at his home, leaders of the ruling Aam Aadmi Party tweeted hours after he refused to appear for questioning in the alleged Delhi liquor scam. Party sources said they are ready for any eventuality. Sources in the Enforcement Directorate – the central agency probing the money laundering angle, which has called Mr Kejriwal for questioning several times — have said they have no such information.
“News coming in that ED is going to raid @ArvindKejriwal’s residence tmrw morning. Arrest likely,” posted senior party leader and Delhi minister Aatishi on X, formerly Twitter.
News coming in that ED is going to raid @ArvindKejriwal‘s residence tmrw morning. Arrest likely.
— Atishi (@AtishiAAP) January 3, 2024
Similar posts were seen on the handles of senior party leaders Saurabh Bhardwaj, Jasmine Shah and Sandeep Pathak.
सुनने में आ रहा है कल सुबह मुख्यमंत्री केजरीवाल जी के घर ED पहुँच कर उन्हें गिरफ़्तार करने वाली है ।
— Saurabh Bharadwaj (@Saurabh_MLAgk) January 3, 2024
BREAKING
Sources confirm that ED is going to raid the residence of CM Arvind Kejriwal tomorrow morning.
He is likely to be arrested.
— Jasmine Shah (@Jasmine441) January 3, 2024
Mr Kejriwal has skipped summons for questioning thrice. The last time he refused to appear was today. He had also refused to appear before the probe agency on November 2 and December 21. Under the rules, a non-bailable warrant can be issued against him any time and he can be arrested.
In April, he was questioned for nine hours by the Central Bureau of Investigation. He has not been named as an accused in the case.
Mr Kejriwal insists that the summons are “motivated” and says it is not clear whether he is being called as a witness or a suspect in the case.His party said it was a plan to stop him from campaigning in the national election due later this year.
With three of its leaders — Manish Sisodia, Sanjay Singh and Satyendra Jain — behind the bars, AAP has long been anticipating the eventuality and has discussed the possible courses of action. They even want Mr Kejriwal to remain the Chief Minister and do his job from jail.
The CBI contends that liquor companies were involved in framing the excise policy, which would have brought them a 12 per cent profit. A liquor lobby it dubbed the “South Group” had paid kickbacks, part of which was routed to public servants. The Enforcement Directorate alleged laundering of the kickbacks.
The BJP has alleged that the proceeds of the alleged scam were used by the AAP to fund its large-scale campaign in Gujarat, in which it got a 12.91 per cent votes and established itself as a national party.
The party has also taken a swipe at the Delhi Chief Minister, saying he is “shaking in fear” and is not appearing before the agency because he knows that he is the “kingpin” of the alleged liquor policy scam.
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