‘Two tasks for Enforcement Directorate: complete AAP and…’: Arvind Kejriwal in court

New Delhi:

The Raus Avenue court in Delhi reserved the detention order against Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who was arrested last week on corruption charges. Last week, Mr. Kejriwal was detained for seven days by the arresting agency, the Enforcement Directorate. The detention ends today and the investigative agency has sought another seven days to continue questioning the Aam Aadmi party leader.

Earlier today, a defiant Mr Kejriwal addressed the court directly and accused the investigative agency of trying to “crush” his party. Mr Kejriwal pointed out that no part of the alleged Rs 100-crore bribe had been recovered, as AAP has done since his arrest. He also said no court had found him guilty.

“I was arrested… but there was no court proof against me. The CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) submitted 31,000 pages (charge sheet) and the ED submitted 25,000 pages. Even if you read them together… the problem remains. … …Why am I being arrested?” Mr Kejriwal asked the court.

What Arvind Kejriwal said in court

The AAP leader, who was given just a few minutes to speak, also said that his name appeared only four times in the tens of thousands of pages and four of those times it was C Arvind and not Arvind Kejriwal.

C Arvind, secretary to former deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia, told authorities that Sisodia, who was arrested in the case in February, handed over “some documents”.

“My name appeared only four times…one of them was ‘C Arvind’,” he said in front of Sisodia.lucky I was given some documents. But MLAs come to my house every day… give me documents and discuss government issues. Is such a statement enough to arrest a sitting chief minister? ” he asked.

The AAP leader was expected to make major revelations in the case. Last night, his wife Sunita Kejriwal announced that her husband would provide insights into the location of the alleged Rs 100-crore funds.

Read | ‘He will reveal where money is in alleged liquor scam’: Kejriwal’s wife

In court today, Mr Kejriwal referred to statements from approvers or government witnesses who had been arrested earlier in the case, suggesting they had been forced to accuse him.

“The ED had only one mission – to entrap me,” he claimed. “(A witness) gave three testimonies…but the court only saw those who accused me. Why? This is not right.”

He said another witness had given six statements without mentioning the chief minister’s name, but he was released after the seventh statement. “If there is really a Rs 100-crore scam… where is the money?”

The chief minister also mentioned a third witness, Sarath Reddy, who claimed that he donated Rs 50 crore to the BJP. “I have proof… they are committing fraud,” he declared.

In a brief but urgent statement, Mr Kejriwal also accused the Education Ministry – which the opposition claims the BJP uses to target rivals, especially ahead of elections – of being told to create “smoke screens… to Allow the BJP to function.” They collect money through extortion.”

Response from the Enforcement Bureau

To all this, Solicitor General SV Raju, who attended the ED, counter-accused Mr Kejriwal of “pandering to the spectators”. “How did he know how many files the ED had? It was all his imagination,” Mr. Raju claimed.

“AAP received kickbacks that they used in the Goa elections… There is a clear chain. We have statements and documents showing that funds came from hawalas (illegal networks),” he said.

“We have material that this person (Mr Kejriwal) demanded a kickback of Rs 100 crore.”

Kejriwal’s dismissal petition

Late last night, the Delhi High Court heard Mr Kejriwal’s petition challenging his arrest over the alleged liquor policy scam. The court issued a notice asking the ED to respond to the petition.

Read | High Court does not immediately release Arvind Kejriwal from custody

The deadline for investigating agencies is April 2. The next hearing in the case will be held on April 3.

What is Delhi Liquor Policy Scam?

The Enforcement Directorate believes that the now-repealed liquor policy provided high profit margins of 185% for retailers and 12% for wholesalers. Of this, 6% (over Rs 600 crore) was bribes and the money was allegedly used to fund AAP’s poll campaign.

The education ministry named the chief minister as a key co-conspirator in the case, but Mr Kejriwal and his party colleagues arrested in connection with the matter – former deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia, federal house member Sanjay Singh and former health minister Satyendar Jain – have both denied the claims. cost of.

NDTV Explained | Why the Enforcement Directorate arrested Arvind Kejriwal

The AAP and the opposition have slammed the BJP-led central government for using central agencies such as the Education Department to target rivals and critics ahead of the general elections. The AAP criticized Mr Kejriwal’s arrest on the grounds that it was timed to disrupt his plans to campaign for the party.

The BJP denies what the opposition describes as its use of central agencies.

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