Congress slams Kejriwal for evading ED summons in Delhi liquor scam

We know the BJP misuses central agencies to target its political rivals but if our leaders could face the ED boldly, Kejriwal too should have done the same. Instead, he chose to run away, writes ETV Bharat's Amit Agnihotri.

New Delhi:The Congress on Thursday slammed Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for evading the ED summons and said that the AAP’s anti-corruption plank had been exposed. The ED had summoned Kejriwal in the alleged Delhi liquor scam in which his former deputy Manish Sisodia and Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Singh are already in jail. Former minister Satyendra Jain is also in jail in another corruption case.

“Our leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi were also summoned in an alleged case by the ED. But they did not evade the summons. They went and answered all the questions posed by the agency over day-long sessions. We know that the BJP misuses central agencies to target its political rivals but if our leaders could face the ED boldly, Kejriwal too should have done the same. Instead, he chose to run away,” senior Delhi Congress leader JP Agarwal told ETV Bharat.

According to Agarwal, a former Delhi MP, the AAP came to power in Delhi in 2013 over its anti-corruption plank but now its top leaders were facing serious charges. “It is ironic. The AAP has been exposed. They promised new and clean politics, they vowed to remain simple and not take perks of power and take action against corruption. Unfortunately, they took official cars, government accommodation, and got involved in corruption,” said Agarwal.

The former MP said that the Congress was the first one to allege corruption in the new Delhi liquor policy which is now being probed by the ED and the CBI. “Our Delhi unit first exposed the liquor policy scam in which Manish Sisodia and Sanjay Singh are in jail. Kejriwal could be next and is therefore avoiding summons. The chief minister is also facing a probe in the Rs 45 crore renovation of his official residence,” said Agarwal.

The Congress functionary played down Kejriwal’s plea that the ED summoned him to disrupt his poll campaigns in Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh. “See, that is a separate issue. Anyone can go and campaign in a state,” said Agarwal. Of late, the Congress has been at unease over AAP’s forays into Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, and Rajasthan where the grand old party claims it is in direct fight with the BJP.

Also, the Congress and the AAP are both part of the national opposition alliance INDIA for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections but the grand old party’s units in Delhi, Punjab, and Gujarat have been opposed to having any pact with Kejriwal’s party. “See, an alliance does not mean a merger. We are strong in these states and will continue to raise our voices against the ruling AAP and BJP. As far as the alliance for 2024 is concerned, that will be decided by our high command,” said Agarwal.

“The Congress is the opposition in Delhi and will continue to raise its voice against the policies of both the AAP government in the state and the BJP-led Centre. Over the past week, we have been organizing rallies in various parts of Delhi to target both the AAP and BJP and will continue with the drive. Also, we are preparing for all the seven Lok Sabha seats in Delhi,” he added.