Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has written to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) that the summons sent to him was unlawful and politically motivated, according to AAP sources.
Mr. Kejriwal skipped the ED summons on December 21 for questioning in connection with the Delhi excise case, as he left Delhi on December 20 for a 10-day Vipassana meditation in Punjab, according to sources.
The AAP chief has also requested the ED to withdraw the summons.
“The timing of your summons leaves much to desire and strengthens my belief that the summons being sent to me are not based upon any objective or rational yardstick but for extraneous considerations at the behest of political rivals who wish to silence the voice of opposition to the ruling dispensation at the Centre to create sensational news in the final few months leading up to the Parliamentary elections in early to mid 2024,” Mr. Kejriwal said in a letter dated December 20.
“I, therefore, once again reiterate my request you to act with fairness & forthwith revoke, withdraw, and recall the summons forthwith.”
“You have chosen not to inform me nor provide me details of the case file corresponding to file number mentioned in your summons or the reasons for summoning me, or any details thereof. Your summons appears to be a fishing and roving enquiry.”
Mr. Kejriwal claimed that in similar circumstances, where individuals are neither informed about the case details nor the capacity in which they are being summoned by the Enforcement Directorate, High courts have declared such summons of Enforcement Directorate invalid and quashed the summons.
ED probe an attempt to stop the Aam Aadmi Party’s growth: Atishi
Delhi minister Atishi on Thursday alleged that the ED probe into the excise policy case was an attempt to stop the Aam Aadmi Party’s growth and popularity.
Addressing a press conference here, Mr. Atishi alleged, “The ED is investigating this case since the last two years. In the history of India, no other policy was investigated as much as this policy is being probed by a central agency. They have put more than 500 of their officials on this duty. Since 1947, this might be the first case of a policy investigated by many officials, but no evidence found.” She claimed that the ED couldn’t find any evidence of wrongdoing despite raiding several locations linked to AAP leaders.
After two years of investigation, not even a penny of ill-gotten money could be found by the CBI or the ED, she further claimed.
“They raided Manish Sisodia’s (former deputy chief minister) residence, offices and other places but couldn’t find anything, yet they arrested him. Similarly, Sanjay Singh has also been put behind bars without any evidence. And now, they are targeting Arvind Kejriwal. How should we consider these summons or arrests of AAP Leaders without any evidence?” Mr. Atishi asked.
On December 18, the ED summoned Mr. Kejriwal, to record his statement in connection with the Delhi excise policy case on December 21. This was the second summons by the ED to the Chief Minister in the case. Mr. Kejriwal was first summoned by the ED on November 2, but he did not appear for the questioning.
Though Mr. Kejriwal is yet to appear before the ED, he was questioned by the CBI for nine hours in April.
Two senior AAP leaders — Manish Sisodia and Sanjay Singh — are already under judicial custody in the case. Mr. 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 Mr. Singh, who is a Rajya Sabha member.
