On Monday, Delhi Health Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj made a statement suggesting that even if the entire Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) were to be incarcerated, the government and the party would continue to operate from behind bars.
Bharadwaj's remark came in response to a query about the AAP's course of action in the event of the potential arrest of Delhi Chief Minister and AAP leader, Arvind Kejriwal, scheduled for November 2. He also reiterated his party's earlier assertions about the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) purported intentions to eliminate the AAP.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has summoned Arvind Kejriwal for questioning regarding his involvement in a money laundering case connected to a now-repealed excise policy. The ED has requested his presence on November 2. AAP leader Atishi, speaking to India Today TV following the ED's summons, expressed concerns that the investigative agency might detain Arvind Kejriwal after questioning him in relation to the alleged liquor policy scandal.
Addressing the potential scenarios and strategies for the AAP, Saurabh Bharadwaj asserted that the final decisions would be made by the senior leaders of the party. However, he emphasized that even if the entire party were incarcerated, the government and the party's operations would persist from their jail cells.
Furthermore, he alleged that the BJP was intent on undermining the "education system and mohalla clinics." Nevertheless, he conveyed Arvind Kejriwal's determination to prevent these disruptions. Bharadwaj suggested that the BJP's desires, such as curtailing free education, electricity, water, and access to healthcare, were behind their wish to see everyone in jail.
Arvind Kejriwal's summons is related to the same case that led to the arrest of former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia in February of the current year, and the apprehension of AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh on October 4.
The ED's summons to Kejriwal followed the Supreme Court's dismissal of Manish Sisodia's bail application in the money laundering case, citing a "tentatively established" money trail of Rs 338 crore in the case. Sisodia is the primary accused in the Delhi excise policy case.
In April, Arvind Kejriwal was summoned for questioning by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) concerning the same case, although he has not been identified as an accused in the FIR filed by the CBI in August the preceding year.
