Noose tightens on Arvind Kejriwal; setback after national party status

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By Our Special Correspondent

New Delhi, April 13: Central Burau of Investigation (CBI) on Friday has summoned Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal into join the probe in the alleged liquor scam. The action, much speculated in the political circles for days, has come within a few days of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) gaining the national party status.

Kejriwal, incidentally, holds no portfolio in the Delhi government. He is the only chief minister in the country who is without any portfolio or department. This is sharply in contrast to the general trend of chief ministers holding several portfolios with themselves. In fact, a few of the chief ministers even hold half of the departments with themselves.

But Kejriwal has been a different case, with political observers claiming that he is paranoid of embroiled in corruption charges. He had been richly accusing the rivals of being corrupt.

With his former deputy Manish Sisodia in judicial custody for about two months now, the CBI summon to Kejriwal is being seen as a logical follow up exercise. New Excise Policy, which was withdrawn by the Kejriwal government, is alleged by the Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party and Congress of being a liquor scam in which some of the traders had been given undue advantages.

“The CBI summons to Kejriwal to appear before it on April 16, 2023 validates the Delhi Congress assertion from the very beginning that he was the mastermind behind the liquor scam, as the PA (personal assistant) of jailed former Excise Minister Manish Sisodia had disclosed that the controversial liquor policy was formulated at the residence of the chief minister and it was finalized with his approval,” charged Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee president Anil Kumar.

He also alleged that “Kejriwal was the mastermind behind the liquor deal, and he was in the full know of everything that transpired in the case, but he came out with new alibis to keep himself safe”.

It may be recalled that Satyendar Jain, former Minister of the AAP government in Delhi, has been in the Tihar Jail for over 10 months now. With Kejriwal now directly in the line of fire of the investigating agencies, political observers noted that it could be a setback for the AAP to become a key player in the Opposition camp.