Bhagwant Mann to seek court permission to set up office for jailed Arvind Kejriwal

He also asserted that no one can replace AAP’s Arvind Kejriwal (File)

New Delhi:

Aam Aadmi Party leader and Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Saturday said that if his Delhi counterpart Arvind Kejriwal is sent to jail, they will The court sought permission to set up his office in the prison to run the government there.

He also claimed that no one can replace Mr Kejriwal in the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).

When asked about the Delhi Chief Minister and AAP chief being arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in the GST policy case and how he was arrested, Mann said in a video interview with news agency PTI: “Nowhere is it written that the government cannot escape jail.” If He was sent to judicial custody and will run his government.

After Mr Kejriwal was detained until March 28, the BJP demanded his resignation.

Mann said: “The law states that he can work in prison until he is found guilty. We will seek permission from the Supreme Court and the High Court to set up an office in the prison and the government will operate normally.”

Mann, who often accompanies Kejriwal to public meetings across the country, was asked if the campaign for the Lok Sabha polls would be affected, Mr Mann replied that no one can replace Kejriwal’s position in AAP, Because he founded the party in an anti-corruption campaign. AAP chief arrested.

He said that he would go wherever the party arranged for him to go.

“No one can take Arvind Kejriwal’s place in the party as the party was brought out of the RIM (India Against Corruption). He is the senior founder member of the party. He registered I was not with him the day the party got the broomstick badge. I joined later,” Mr Mann said.

The Punjab chief minister said there was no ranking in the AAP, adding, “Everyone is a loyal soldier of Kejriwal”.

“One thing Mr Kejriwal did in the party was he made everyone a national convener. AAP made everyone a leader.

“I have 92 MLAs in Punjab. These 80 are first-time MLAs, ministers, aged between 28 and 30 years. So, there is no ranking of generals and soldiers in AAP. We are all generals and soldiers — Loyal soldier Arvind Kejriwal… we stand firmly with him,” Mr Mann said.

Punjab Chief Minister has lashed out at the BJP, saying it is engaged in a “political vendetta” and wants to send all opponents to jail to win elections.

“This happened in Bangladesh. All the opposition in the country were jailed. In Russia, Putin was elected president with 88% of the vote until 2030. Is this democracy?” he said.

Mann pointed out that India is said to be the largest democracy in the world, adding, “Is this a democracy that wants to jail those who build hospitals, schools and deliver speeches in the Union House?” Aam Aadmi Party supremo Leaders, including former Deputy Chief Minister and Education Minister Manish Sisodia, former Health Minister Satyendar Jain and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh He was imprisoned for several months after being arrested in a money laundering case.

Mr Kejriwal is currently in the custody of the Enforcement Directorate till March 28. He was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on Thursday night in connection with a money laundering case related to the government’s now-repeated GST policy. Sisodia and Singh were also jailed for the same incident.

“Right now, there is a need to save Dr Bhimrao Ambedkar’s constitution and the country’s 1.4 billion people understand this,” Mr Mann said.

Meanwhile, Delhi Cabinet Minister Atish claimed that Aam Aadmi Party’s office in the city has been “blocked” from all sides, adding that the party would report the matter to the Election Commission. A Delhi police officer refuted the AAP’s allegations.

The police officer said police have deployed personnel at DDU Marg to prevent crowds from gathering since Section 144 of the CrPC was implemented there.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)