AAP not scared of lawsuits, Kejriwal tells Jaitley

AAP leaders are planning to file an FIR against Arun Jaitley, who filed defamation suits against them and has sought Rs. 10 crore in damages

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley comes out with his supporters after filing a defamation case against Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and others at a district court on Monday.

Putting up a defiant front against the defamation case filed by Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley against him and five other AAP leaders on Monday, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said his party was not scared of any lawsuits, and challenged the Union Minister to prove his innocence before the Inquiry Commission set up by the Delhi government on Sunday to probe the alleged scam in Delhi and District Cricket Association.

“(Arun) Jaitley should not try to scare us by filing cases against us. Our battle against corruption shall continue. Jaitley ji should cooperate with the Commission of Inquiry and prove his innocence there,” Mr. Kejriwal tweeted on Monday.

Mr. Jaitley filed both civil and criminal defamation suits against AAP leaders for allegedly defaming him and sought Rs. 10 crore as damages. The AAP leaders have filed an affidavit in the court and are planning to file an FIR against the Finance Minister.

AAP leader Sanjay Singh, who is also named in the suits, announced that the party will stick to its guns and ensure that Mr. Jaitley is brought before the court for “the irregularities in the DDCA when he was its president”. “We will continue to hold him corrupt in DDCA affairs,” Mr. Singh said.

Another AAP leader, Ashutosh, tweeted, “Mr Jaitley don't threaten us with defamation. Answer the questions we had asked? You will take us to court, we will take u to people's court.” He drew similarities between the irregularities in the DDCA with those in the 2010 Commonwealth Games.

“Arun Jaitley is the BJP’s Kalmadi. The BJP is neck-deep in corruption, we will fight it out politically,” he said while referring to Congress leader Suresh Kalmadi, who is accused of corruption in the Commonwealth Games. He added that the AAP is exploring all legal options in the case.

Apart from Mr. Kejriwal and Mr. Sanjay Singh, the other AAP leaders named in the suits are Kumar Vishwas, Ashutosh, Raghav Chadha and Deepak Bajpayee. These leaders have publicly levelled allegations against Mr. Jaitley with regard to the DDCA affairs. Top leaders of the BJP hit back, accusing the AAP of attempting to reduce the stature of their leader and hailed the Finance Minister for maintaining an “impeccable standard of probity”.