Hours after Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal repeated a huge claim that his deputy Manish Sisodia would be arrested soon, the BJP hit back and gave details of the allegations against Delhi’s deputy chief minister. The trading of allegations and sharp attacks comes as Lieutenant-General VK Saxena recommended a CBI probe into the Kejriwal government’s new liquor policy.
This is not the first time that Kejriwal has alleged that his deputy would be arrested. He had made similar comments earlier too when Delhi minister Satyendar Jain was arrested over a money laundering case filed by the Enforcement Directorate.
Addressing a press conference, union minister and BJP leader Meenakshi Lekhi said: “People of Delhi were deceived. The liquor policy was adopted in Delhi illegally. Kejriwal ji should give a logical explanation with all the details.”
As the liquor policy turns out to be the latest flashpoint between the BJP and the AAP, Lekhi further said: “Kejriwal ji should tell that on October 25, 2021, the Excise Department had given notice to those companies, which were given liquor licenses. What was the action taken in this matter? On July 14, 2022, without a cabinet note, a rebate of ₹144.36 crore was given to the same companies without following the law?”
“In a democratic set up, when questions are asked, answers need to be given. The decisions they have taken in violation of the rules to benefit the liquor companies, have caused loss to the public,” said the BJP MP, who was addressing the presser with Delhi BJP chief Adesh Gupta.
She further said that an earnest money deposit of ₹30 crore was returned, causing a huge loss to the state exchequer.
Meanwhile, the Delhi BJP chief alleged that the AAP government’s decision had ”benefited the liquor mafia”.
“First of all, today I want to thank LG sir. Because BJP was also agitating against Delhi’s new liquor policy for a long time, because corruption has happened on a large scale in it. Today it is a matter of great happiness that LG sahib has ordered a CBI inquiry into it. At the time when the new liquor policy was announced, 2.5 per cent commission was given to the liquor contractors, which was increased to 12.5 per cent. The Kejriwal government has done the work of giving 10 per cent benefit directly to the liquor mafia.”
Earlier in the day, the Delhi Chief minister – in an apparent dare to the BJP – had said: “I have been saying that they will arrest Manish Sisodia. There is a new system in India. They decide who has to be jailed, then a fake case is created against that person. This case is fake. There is no truth in it.”
“We are not scared of jails, not scared of the noose. They have made several cases against our people. The AAP has been growing since its win in Punjab. The AAP’s time has come.”