New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate on Saturday issued summons for the fourth time to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in the Delhi excise policy case, as per official sources.
The AAP convener has been asked to depose before the agency for questioning on January 18, officials added. The 55-year-old Kejriwal had refused to appear before the ED for the third time on January 3, saying the "non-disclosure and non-response approach" of the agency cannot sustain the test of law, equity or justice and its "obstinacy" is tantamount to assuming the role of judge, jury and executioner.
The chief minister was earlier asked to appear on November 2 and December 21 last year. As per allegations, the Delhi government's excise policy for 2021-22 to grant licences to liquor traders paved way for cartelisation and favoured certain dealers who had allegedly paid bribes for it, a charge repeatedly refuted by the AAP.
The policy was subsequently scrapped and Delhi Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena recommended a CBI probe, following which the ED registered a case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
Kejriwal smelling a rat, had cried foul and blamed the Narendra Modi-led government at the Centre for using probe agencies to denigrate Opposition leaders ahead of the Lok Sabha polls.
However, Union Minister Anurag Thakur questioned Delhi's Chief Minister and asked why is he running away from the investigation. "From 2011-14, Arvind Kejriwal used to talk big. At that time he used to talk about raising his voice against the corruption of Congress, today he himself is involved in corruption," he said.
Senior BJP leader Harish Khuranna added, "ED has summoned Arvind Kejriwal for the fourth time, and I have heard that he is on a Goa visit. Vipassana, Goa, and the elections in Madhya Pradesh are more important for him than to respect the law." (With PTI inputs)
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