Tag: Delhi Chief Minister

Kejriwal

ED Produces Kejriwal At Rouse Avenue Court

By LokMarg

The Enforcement Directorate on Friday produced Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal before Rouse Avenue court following his arrest in connection with the excise policy case.

The special CBI judge Kaveri Baweja’s bench will hear the matter. Senior Advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi is representing the Delhi CM.

Kejriwal was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in the excise policy case on Thursday after the Delhi High Court refused interim protection to Kejriwal from coercive action in connection with the excise policy case.

The Delhi CM was arrested after skipping nine summons issued against him by the Enforcement Directorate and Delhi High Court, which refused to grant him relief from any coercive action by the probe agency.

The case pertains to alleged irregularities and money laundering in framing and implementing the Delhi excise policy case 2022, which was later scrapped.

Arvind Kejriwal’s arrest came days after the ED arrested K Kavitha, Bharat Rashta Samithi (BRS) leader and daughter of former Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, in connection with its investigation into money laundering charges linked to the now-scrapped excise policy.

Earlier Manish Sisodia, who was the then Delhi Deputy Chief Minister, was arrested by the CBI on February 26 following several rounds of questioning. On October 5, ED arrested Sanjay Singh, who is a Rajya Sabha member.

Kejriwal’s arrest also comes ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, which will be held from April 19 to June 1, as per the schedule announced by the Election Commission earlier in the month.

Two senior AAP leaders, Manish Sisodia and Sanjay Singh, are in judicial custody in the excise policy case. Sisodia, who was the then Delhi Deputy Chief Minister, was arrested by the CBI on February 26 following several rounds of questioning. On October 5, ED arrested Sanjay Singh, who is a Rajya Sabha member. (ANI)

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Arvind Kejriwal RSS

Kejriwal Arrested By ED In Excise Policy Case

By LokMarg

Delhi Chief Minister and AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal has been arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in the excise policy case, sources said.

AAP leader and Delhi Minister Atishi said they had moved the Supreme Court for quashing Kejriwal’s arrest and have sought an urgent hearing.

“We have moved the Supreme Court for quashing the arrest of Delhi CM @ArvindKejriwal by ED. We have asked for an urgent hearing by the Supreme Court tonight itself,” Atishi said in a post on X.

She had earlier said that Kejriwal will run the government from jail.

“We have received news that ED has arrested Arvind Kejriwal… We have always said that Arvind Kejriwal will run the govt from jail. He will remain the CM of Delhi. We have filed a case in the Supreme Court. Our lawyers are reaching SC. We will demand SC have an urgent hearing tonight,” she said.

An Enforcement Directorate team arrived at Kejriwal’s residence on Thursday for questioning in connection with the liquor policy case. The team conducted a search operation at his residence, the sources said.

The Enforcement Directorate team reached his residence for questioning hours after the Delhi High Court refused interim protection to Kejriwal from coercive action in connection with the excise policy case.

AAP workers also staged a protest outside the residence of Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal.

Denying him interim protection from arrest in the liquor policy case, the Delhi HC ruled that, in this state, it was not inclined to do so.

The court passed down the directive during the hearing on a plea by the AAP supremo, urging coercive action against him in connection with the excise policy case.

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Raghav Chadha called the ED’s move a conspiracy to arrest the Delhi Chief Minister just before the Lok Sabha elections.

“Just before the Lok Sabha elections, a big conspiracy is going on to arrest Arvind Kejriwal ji. Kejriwal ji has the blessings of crores of people. The wonderful works done in Delhi and Punjab are being discussed all over the world today. You can arrest Kejriwal’s body but cannot put Kejriwal’s ideology behind bars,” Chadha said in a post on X.

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said BJP’s political team (ED) cannot put Kejriwal’s ideology behind bars. “It is only the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) that can stop the BJP. Thoughts and ideas can never be suppressed,” he said.

Delhi Minister Imran Hussain said, “It’s very unfortunate. It’s a conspiracy to stop the AAP and Arvind Kejriwal. People of Delhi love Arvind Kejriwal and they’ll respond to the BJP.”

ED had issued repeated summons to the AAP supremo in the excise policy case and he had skipped them, pointing out that the probe agency had moved the court against him.

According to the ED, the agency wants to record Kejriwal’s statement in the case on issues like the formulation of now scrapped excise policy, meetings held before it was finalized, and allegations of bribery.

Two senior AAP leaders, Manish Sisodia and Sanjay Singh, are in judicial custody in the excise policy case. Sisodia, who was the then Delhi Deputy Chief Minister, was arrested by the CBI on February 26 following several rounds of questioning. On October 5, ED arrested Sanjay Singh, who is a Rajya Sabha member. (ANI)

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Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal

Kejriwal Gets Bail In ED Summon Case

By LokMarg

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday appeared before the Rouse Avenue Court the national capital in the Enforcement Directorate summons case.

The Rouse Avenue Court later granted him bail in both the complaints of the Enforcement Directorate.

Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (ACMM) Divya Malhotra granted bail to the Delhi CM.

The bail was granted on a bail bond of Rs 15,000 and a surety of Rs 1 lakh.

Kejriwal appeared before the court following a summons issued to him by the court based on two ED complaints in connection with the Delhi Excise Policy case.

The Rouse Avenue Court on Friday reserved an order on the stay of summons issued to Kejriwal on complaints filed by the ED.

Kejriwal had challenged the summons issued by the court after taking cognizance of two complaints filed by the ED for avoidance of the summons issued to him.

According to the ED, the agency 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. (ANI)

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Kejriwal CAA

Who Will Employ Them?: Kejriwal Takes On Centre On CAA

By LokMarg

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday joined his INDIA bloc partners to take on the centre over the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). Kejriwal termed the government decision as “very dangerous” and said that the government money which should be spent on the development of family and country will now be spent on allowing Pakistanis to settle in India.

“After ruling the country for 10 years and just before the elections, they have to talk about the Citizenship Amendment Act. If you had done some work in these 10 years, perhaps you would have asked for votes on your work instead of on CAA. It means that a large number of minorities from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh will be brought to our country, and they will be employed and settled here. The youth of the country are not being given employment by the BJP government. Many people of India do not have houses but BJP wants to bring people from Pakistan and give them houses here,” he said.

The Delhi CM also questioned the government claiming that the influx of refugees could lead to a huge financial burden.

“There are approximately three crore minorities in these three countries. As soon as our doors open, huge crowds from these countries will come here. Even if 1.5 crore people come here, who will employ them? Where will they be settled? Why is BJP doing this?” CM Kejriwal said.

Further, he added that if the BJP wants to bring back anyone, then it should bring 11 lakh big industrialists and businessmen who have left India.

“In the last 10 years, more than 11 lakh big industrialists and businessmen have left India. These people used to run industries in India, do business and provide jobs and employment to lakhs of people. These people left India due to BJP’s wrong policy and atrocities. If BJP wants to bring them back, then it should bring these people back. If these people come to India, they will invest in India and our children will get employment,” he added.

Arvind Kejriwal urged the people to vote against the BJP if they do not agree to take back the law.

On March 11, the Union Home Ministry notified the rules of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), days ahead of the announcement of the Lok Sabha election schedule.

The CAA rules, introduced by the Narendra Modi government and passed by Parliament in 2019, aim to confer Indian citizenship to persecuted non-Muslim migrants–including Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhists, Parsis, and Christians–who migrated from Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Afghanistan and arrived in India before December 31, 2014. (ANI)

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Arvind Kejriwal

Kejriwal Agrees To Appear Before ED Virtually

By LokMarg

In response to the eighth summons of the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) which asked Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to appear before ED on March 4, the Aam Aadmi Party leader has written a reply to the Directorate of Enforcement stating the ED’s summon as “illegal”, however he has agreed to appear before the agency virtually on any date after March 12.

Earlier on February 27, The Directorate of Enforcement (ED) issued an eighth summons to Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) supremo Arvind Kejriwal in a money laundering probe related to irregularities in the Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22 case, asking him to join the investigation on March 4.

The fresh summons to the Delhi Chief Minister followed the seventh summons which he had skipped on February 26.

Kejriwal has so far skipped seven previous summons issued by the ED on February 26, February 19, February 2, January 18, January 3, November 2 and December 22, calling them “illegal and politically motivated”.

The ED wants to record Kejriwal’s statement in the case on issues like the formulation of policy, meetings held before it was finalised, and allegations of bribery.

While skipping the seventh summons issued by the ED, AAP, in a statement, termed it “illegal”, saying that the ED should stop sending summonses and wait for the court’s decision as the probe agency has already approached the court on the matter.

A day after Kejriwal skipped the fifth summons issued by the Enforcement Directorate, the agency on February 3 approached a Delhi court against him for “non-compliance with the summons”.

The case 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 for part of its assembly elections campaign in Goa in 2022.

The excise policy was aimed to revitalise 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. (ANI)

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ED Kejriwal

Kejriwal Apologises In SC For Retweeting Defamatory Clip Of YouTuber

By LokMarg

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday submitted before the Supreme Court that retweeting the video which was allegedly defamatory and was circulated by YouTuber Dhruv Rathee in 2018, was a “mistake”.

A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta directed the trial court not to proceed with the defamation case against him for the time being.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief has approached the apex court, challenging the February 5 order of the Delhi High Court refusing to quash the summons issued against him. The High Court had said that reposting alleged libellous content would attract defamation law.

The summon was issued in a defamation complaint lodged against him for retweeting a video of a YouTuber on the social media platform ‘X’.

During the hearing, senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, appearing for Kejriwal, told the apex court, “There is no problem in admitting that this was a mistake if he had known that these would be the consequences.”

Singhvi requested an adjournment before the trial court, saying that they were prosecuting Kejriwal swiftly.

“They are prosecuting him very fast. They are hotfooting it. We will request an adjournment before the trial court,” he said.

Justice Khanna said that Kejriwal need not appear in court for now, given the office he occupied.

The bench then asked the complainant in the case to take instructions on whether the case could be closed based on Kejriwal’s admitting to the mistake. The complainant’s advocate said he would take instructions from his client, and thereafter, the bench posted the matter for hearing on March 11.

“Relist on Monday, March 11. In the meantime, the matter will not be taken up by the trial court,” the bench stated in its order.

A defamation complaint was filed against Kejriwal for retweeting a video by a YouTuber in 2018 accusing the founder and operator of a Twitter page called ‘I Support Narendra Modi’ of behaving like ‘BJP IT CELL Part-II’. Kejriwal retweeted the tweet, which led to the founder filing a defamation complaint against the Chief Minister. (ANI)

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ED Kejriwal

ED Issues Seventh Summon To Kejriwal To Appear On Feb 26

By LokMarg

The Directorate of Enforcement on Thursday issued the seventh summons to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to appear before the agency. Sources say the Delhi CM has been asked to appear before the ED on February 26.

On February 14, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had issued a sixth summons to the Delhi Chief Minister in the money laundering probe related to alleged irregularities in the Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22 case, asking him to join the investigation on February 19.

The fresh summons to the Delhi Chief Minister were issued after he skipped the fifth summons on February 2.

Arvind Kejriwal had earlier skipped five previous summons issued by the ED on February 2, January 18, January 3, November 2 and December 22, calling them “illegal and politically motivated.”.

The ED wants to record Kejriwal’s statement in the case on issues like the formulation of policy, meetings held before it was finalised, and allegations of bribery.

While skipping the fifth 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.

“All five notices sent to me (by the ED) are illegal and invalid in the eyes of the law. Whenever such general, non-specific notices were sent by the ED in the past, they were quashed and declared invalid by courts. These notices are being sent as part of a political conspiracy,” Kejriwal said after skipping the fifth notice.

A day after Kejriwal skipped the fifth summons issued by the Enforcement Directorate, the agency on February 3 approached a Delhi Court against him for “non-compliance with the summons”.

The case 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 alleged aide Sarvesh Mishra, the ED had 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.

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. (ANI)

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Arvind Kejriwal

Our MLAs Offered Rs 25 Crore Each: Kejriwal

By LokMarg

A day after going all out against the Centre in light of the Supreme Court order, overturning the verdict of the Chandigarh mayoral polls and calling it in favour of the AAP, the party’s national convenor and Delhi Chief Minister, Arvind Kejriwal, on Wednesday launched a blistering attack on the BJP, accusing them again of trying to induce his MLAs with big-money offers and topple elected governments in Opposition-ruled states.

Speaking on the floor of the Delhi Assembly on Wednesday, Kejriwal said, “Sometimes ‘Adharma’ (immorality) pervades the system to such an extent that we often wonder if truth and honesty have any place in society. Many good people lose their faith in the system and political class due to ‘
Adharma ka bolbala
‘ (free run of immorality). At such times, God restores our faith in the system and the virtues of honesty and probity by removing rotten elements. ‘
Charon taraf adharma ka bolbala hai
‘ (Everywhere one looks these days, immorality seems to be ruling the roost). Many have started to think that there is no sense in treading on the path of honesty and probity when those who indulged in wrong acts are conspiring against them.”

Coming out in support of former Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia, who is currently behind bars in connection with the liquor policy case, the AAP national convenor said, “The man who is responsible for Delhi’s education system and putting it at par with the world’s best (Sisodia) is in jail and the one accused of misconduct with our daughters and sisters (former national wrestling federation chief and BJP MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh) is still out there wielding his political clout and influence.”

Repeating his charge against the ruling party at the Centre, that it was trying to topple elected governments in Opposition-ruled states, the Delhi CM said, “Our MLAs were offered Rs 25 crore (each by the BJP to switch sides). Everywhere you see, Opposition MLAs are being lured away and governments are being toppled. Be it Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Goa, Maharashtra, the Northeast or Uttarakhand…everywhere one looks, elected MLAs are being lured away with black money.”

Notably, the Crime Branch of Delhi Police had issued notices to AAP chief Kejriwal and fellow party leader and minister Atishi at their homes in their absence in connection with their poaching charge at the BJP.

Responding to the Crime Branch notice, Kejriwal claimed it did not mention any FIR, adding that his party wouldn’t cower under such ‘theatrics’ and intimidatory tactics.

Veering to the Chandigarh mayoral polls, the AAP national chief said, “In Chandigarh, the BJP’s representative (presiding officer) manipulated the election results, to the extent that a candidate, who was leading initially by a significant margin, lost and the one who trailed came out eventually as the victor. Something similar played out in neighbouring Pakistan as well.”

On Tuesday, the Supreme Court declared Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) councillor Kuldeep Kumar, jointly supported by the Congress, as the winner of the Chandigarh mayoral polls.

The apex court ruled that the presiding officer had deliberately defaced eight ballots cast in favour of Kuldeep Kumar, rendering them invalid.

“The eight votes which were treated as invalid by making those markings… counting the eight votes for the petitioner (AAP candidate Kumar) will make him have 20 votes. We direct that the election result by the Returning Officer is quashed. The petitioner is declared to be the winner of the Chandigarh mayoral polls,” the bench stated in its order. (ANI)

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Arvind Kejriwal

Senior Civil Servants Receiving Threats If They Implement Scheme: Kejriwal

By LokMarg

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal claimed that senior civil servants of the Delhi government are not cooperating with the state government in implementing a scheme related to one-time settlement of unpaid water bills, saying that they are being threatened by “higher office,” indicating at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

“This scheme was passed by June 13, 2023. But it has not been implemented yet. For that it needs to be brought to the cabinet. The Finance Secretary is saying that he will not give his comments, and the UD (Urban Development) Secretary is saying that he will not bring the bill to the cabinet without comments. Officers have stated in writing that they will not implement this. Officers are saying that they are being threatened of suspension, expulsion, or raids by the ED and CBI. They are ready to resign. This is a constitutional crisis. We have asked the LG to intervene,” Kejriwal said speaking in a press conference after his address in the Assembly on Monday.

Speaking in the Assembly, Kejriwal said that since Delhi is not a full-fledged state, it has fallen prey to “dirty” and “low-level politics” by the central government.

“Delhi has a problem. Though Delhi is half a state, I don’t think it has five per cent of statehood. If it had been a full fledged state, no officer would have dared not to follow the directive of Ministers and Chief Minister. He would have been immediately suspended. Delhi is under the threat of dirty and low-level politics. Since Delhi is not a full fledged state, the real power is with the central government. They central government is run by a different party who do not want the elected government to function in Delhi properly,” the Chief Minister said.

On the crisis of people not paying their water bills, Kejriwal said, “There are around 27 lakh consumers. 40 per cent do not pay their bills because they think their bill is frivolous.”

The Chief Minister said that such bills may have been generated because during the pandemic, meter readings could not be taken properly.

On the one-time settlement scheme that the government wants to bring, Kejriwal said, “If in the recent two years, if you think that two or more readings are proper, the water bill for the entire unpaid period will be generated by multiplying the months with the meter reading for that month.”

Explaining in detail the settlement scheme in the press conference, the Chief Minister said, “The Delhi government has come up with a one-time settlement scheme. Under this, in the last 2-4 years of which you have not paid the bill, if two of the bills are logical, as determined by you and the Jal Board, will be set as an average and multiplied by the number of months of the unpaid time, and a water bill will be generated.”

Speaking in the Assembly about the administrative hurdles being faced by his government, Kejriwal said, “We want the scheme to come to the Cabinet. For that, we need the comments of Finance Secretary. But the Finance Secretary wrote on the file that he would not be giving comments…The UD secreatary said that he will not let the scheme be tabled in the cabinet till the Finance secretary gives his comments…Senior IAS officers started crying saying that they are being threatened by the higher office.”

In a scathing attack at the BJP, Kejriwal said, “BJP hates Delhites. They want to destroy Delhi. They did not pay the rent for mohalla clinics for three months, did not pay bills, stopped yoga classes…Till I am alive, I will stand like a wall against the BJP.”

“The LG said that he does not have any information about the matter. Even if you call these officers, the scheme will be passed by evening. If they do not approve this, the LG can suspend them,” he added.

The Chief Minister also assured Delhi residents not to pay their bills till the time the one-time settlement scheme is implemented.

On skipping summons by the Enforcement Directorate for the sixth time, Kejriwal said, “The ED should wait for the court to decide before issuing a fresh summon.”

On Chandigarh Mayor Manoj Sonkar resigning ahead of the Supreme Court hearing on allegations of irregularities in the vote-counting process, the Aam Aadmi Party chief said, “Their Mayor resigned yesterday. This shows that they were wrong. They had won the election through malpractice. If they do not win elections, they buy people.” (ANI)

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Kejriwal to Visit Ram Mandir

Kejriwali, Bhagwant Mann To Visit Ram Mandir On Monday

By LokMarg

Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief Arvind Kejriwal and his Punjab counterpart, Bhagwant Mann, will visit the newly inaugurated Ram Temple in Ayodhya on Monday.

During their visit to Ayodhya, the families of both leaders will also accompany them.

Earlier in January, Kejriwal said his preference was to visit the temple later with his parents, wife, and children.

“I want to visit Ayodhya with my family. My parents are very keen to visit the Ram Temple, so we’ll go someday after January 22,” he added.

The Pran Pratishtha ceremony of Lord Ram in the newly built Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Mandir in Ayodhya was held on January 22, led by rituals that were performed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, and Lok Sabha floor leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury decline dthe invitation to attend Pran Pratishtha ceremony of Ram Temple

“Religion is a personal matter. But the RSS/BJP have long made a political project of the temple in Ayodhya. The inauguration of the incomplete temple by the leaders of the BJP and the RSS has been obviously brought forward for electoral gain,” the party said in a statement.

The ceremonial journey leading up to the Pran Pratishtha included a seven-day ritual that commenced on January 16, 2024.

The ceremony was attended by representatives of all major spiritual and religious sects in the country. People from all walks of life, including representatives of various tribal communities, will also attend the ceremony.

The Shri Ram Janmbhoomi Mandir is constructed in traditional Nagara style. Its length (east-west) is 380 feet; width is 250 feet and height is 161 feet; and is supported by a total of 392 pillars and 44 doors.

The pillars and walls of the temple showcase intricately sculpted depictions of Hindu deities, Gods, and Goddesses. In the main sanctum sanctorum on the ground floor, the childhood form of Bhagwan Shri Ram (the idol of Shri Ramlalla) has been placed. (ANI)

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