The Aam Aadmi Party on Wednesday alleged that Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had interfered with a police probe into the working of a club affiliated with the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) in 2011 and 2012.
The AAP said in a statement Mr. Jaitley had used his “political clout” as the Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha at that time and “actively connived with all the wrongdoers to hide large-scale corruption and financial irregularities.”
The AAP presented what it termed “proof” of Mr. Jaitley’s attempts at interfering with the Delhi Police’s investigation into how the Syndicate Bank Cricket Club was illegally converted into a private club. Mr. Jaitley, who was president of the DDCA for 13 years till 2013, apparently wrote to then Delhi Police Commissioner B.K. Gupta on October 27, 2011, to ask that a probe against DDCA office-bearers be closed.
According to the letter, which AAP leaders Ashutosh, Dilip Pandey and Saurabh Bhardwaj produced at a press conference, Mr. Jaitley wrote that the investigation into wrongdoings related to the Syndicate Bank Cricket Club should be dealt with fairly and the probe be closed as “the DDCA had done no wrong.”
In another letter that the AAP produced, Mr. Jaitley wrote to Ranjit Narayan, then Special Commissioner in Delhi Police, on May 5, 2012, asking him to stop questioning DDCA officials in the matter.
“The complaints are unsubstantiated and do not disclose any offence. Certain office-bearers of the DDCA are feeling harassed by the repeated questioning in this regard,” read the letter.
The letter reiterated Mr.Jaitley’s demand that the probe be closed, citing his earlier letter to the Police Commissioner. Mr. Ashutosh said these letters proved that Mr. Jaitley had tried to stall the police’s investigation. “On the basis of documentary evidence, it is proved that Mr. Jaitley tried to interfere in the probe. He has said that he was not involved in the day-to-day running of the DDCA being a non-executive president. But there is no such post,” said Mr. Ashutosh.
The AAP said Mr. Jaitley was aware of the corruption in the DDCA. The party posed five questions to the Minister, including whether he has misused his position.
| >AAP's questions to Jaitley on DDCA scam | |
| 1 | Did he misuse his position as Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha to pressure the Delhi Police? |
| 2 | Being an eminent lawyer, can he deny that his action amounts to directly obstructing the police investigation in an ongoing case? |
| 3 | On what basis did he conclude that the complaints regarding Syndicate Bank were unsubstantiated and disclosed no offence? |
| 4 | Given his position in this Union government, is it fair for him to continue as a central minister, particularly when the Delhi Police directly reports to the Centre ? |
| 5 | What was his interest in attempting to derail the investigation and did he reveal your action in the next DDCA AGM? |
