Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday skipped the fourth summon issued by the Enforcement Directorate. Crying a 'criminal conspiracy' over the summon issued to him, the AAP's national convenor questioned why he was being summoned 'just months before Lok Sabha elections'. Kejriwal has not appeared before the investigation agency even once despite being summoned four times.
On Saturday January 13th, The Directorate of Enforcement (ED) had issued a summon to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for fourth time in a money laundering probe related to irregularities in the Delhi excise policy 2021-22 case asking him to join the investigation on January 18.
The fourth summons to Delhi CM followed the third summons which he skipped earlier in January. Kejriwal has so far skipped summons issued by the ED on three occasions including on January 3, November 2 and on December 22, calling them "illegal and politically motivated."
ED wants to record Kejriwal's statement
The ED wants to record Kejriwal's statement in the case on issues like the formulation of policy, meetings held before it was finalized, and allegations of bribery. While skipping the third summons issued by the ED, Kejriwal termed it "illegal", saying he was ready to cooperate, but the agency's intention was to arrest him and stop him from election campaigning.
The case against the Aam Aadmi Party supremo is based on a First Information Report (FIR) alleging multiple irregularities in the formation and implementation of the Delhi excise policy (2021-22) by the Central Bureau of Investigation. The policy was withdrawn after allegations of corruption.
In its sixth charge sheet filed in the case on December 2, 2023, naming AAP leader Sanjay Singh and his aide Sarvesh Mishra, the ED has claimed that the AAP used kickbacks worth Rs 45 crore generated via the policy as part of its assembly elections campaign in Goa in 2022.
Details of chargesheet
On Kejriwal's role, one of the six charge sheets filed in January 2023 states that Kejriwal told businessman Sameer Mahendru that former AAP communications in-charge Vijay Nair "is his boy" and that he should trust him. The excise policy was aimed to revitalize the city's flagging liquor business and replace a sales-volume-based regime with a license fee for traders. It promised swankier stores and a better buying experience. The policy introduced discounts and offers on the purchase of liquor for the first time in Delhi.
Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena's move to order a probe into alleged irregularities in the regime prompted the scrapping of the policy. The AAP has accused Saxena's predecessor, Anil Baijal, of sabotaging the move with a few last-minute changes that resulted in lower-than-expected revenues. Two senior AAP leaders -- Manish Sisodia and Sanjay Singh -- are already under judicial custody in the case. Sisodia, who was the then Delhi Deputy Chief Minister, was arrested by the CBI on February 26 following several rounds of questioning and on October 5, the ED arrested Singh, who is a Rajya Sabha member
(With inputs from ANI)
