New Delhi: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Friday accused the BJP-led Centre and the Delhi Police of conspiring to "kill" its chief Arvind Kejriwal and urged the Election Commission (EC) to restore his security cover provided by the Punjab Police.
There was no immediate reaction from the Delhi Police to the allegation. The BJP in a statement later in the day called the allegations a "fake drama" and "election stunt" to divert attention from AAP governance failure. BJP MP Parvesh Verma slammed Kejriwal for seeking additional security while he already enjoys Z-plus security by Delhi police.
Addressing a press conference here, the party said it has written to the EC demanding "fairgrounds" for the AAP in the February 5 Delhi Assembly polls and the restoration of Kejriwal's security cover by the Punjab Police, along with an audit of "life-threatening" attacks on him.
It alleged that the Delhi Police, which comes under the Centre, turned a blind eye to attacks on Kejriwal following Union Home Minister Amit Shah's order. "There are two players involved in this conspiracy to kill Kejriwalji -- the BJP and the Delhi Police. They are both conspiring to end Kejriwal's life. Attacks have been attempted on him one after the other.
"In October (last year), an attack was made on Kejriwal. Upon investigation by us, it was found that the attackers were BJP workers, but police took no action," Delhi Chief Minister Atishi alleged.
"We have written to the EC demanding that Kejriwal's security be restored. We do not trust the Delhi Police as it is under Amit Shah's control," she added. The AAP in its letter to the EC alleged that the removal of the security was an instance of "dirty politics" by the BJP ahead of the Delhi polls.
"We write to you with utmost urgency and grave concern regarding the security arrangements of Arvind Kejriwal, ex-chief minister of Delhi and the national convenor of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), who has been consistently facing grave threats to his life and deliberate lapses in his security detail.
"These lapses are not isolated incidents but appear to be part of a larger, orchestrated pattern designed to jeopardise his safety," the letter written by the AAP leaders to the EC read. It alleged that on different occasions over the last three months, Kejriwal came under several attacks, including physical assault and stone pelting during a political rally.
But police "simply acted as mute spectators" and did not make an attempt to protect him, the letter alleged. According to it, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) asked for a withdrawal of the Punjab Police's security cover for Kejriwal in Delhi as he already enjoys Z-plus security here.
"The Punjab Police, which has been a crucial and reliable component of his security detail, has been abruptly withdrawn without consultation or justification. This reckless and politically-motivated decision has left Kejriwal entirely dependent on the Delhi Police -- a force directly controlled by the BJP through its government at the Centre," the party said in the letter.
The withdrawal was announced by Punjab Director General of Police Gaurav Yadav on Thursday. "Following directions from the Delhi Police and the EC, we withdrew the component of the Punjab Police in the security of Kejriwalji," Yadav said.
At the press conference, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann argued that BJP leaders, like his Uttar Pradesh counterpart Yogi Adityanath, too receive protection from other states when they require it.
"Those who receive Z-plus security are supposed to be provided protection. Yogi Adityanath, for example, gets security from his state and also receives protection here while campaigning as he is a Z-plus protectee.
"West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had also requested help from the Punjab Police during elections. She told me that she did not trust central forces. So we provided security to her and charged money for it," Mann said. Parvesh Verma called the allegations a political stunt.
"It is now clear that Kejriwal is playing games with the public. Delhi Police provides full security, so why does he need extra protection from Punjab? This is nothing but a political stunt ahead of the elections.
"Kejriwal is creating a false 'security threat' to divert attention from his growing failures. He is scripting this drama so that later he can claim, 'I was attacked,' and the election theatrics will begin!" he said. Verma alleged that Kejriwal was trying to cover up his "increasing unpopularity and failures" by raising a non-issue.
"His move is a strategic distraction, aimed at diverting the public's attention from real issues. Soon, we will see posters saying 'Why was I attacked? This is nothing more than a desperate political manoeuvre," he added.
