The Congress on Saturday hit out at the Aam Aadmi Party demanding the resignation of Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia after the CBI registered a case against him in an alleged liquor license scam.
Addressing a press conference in Delhi, Congress general secretary Ajay Maken said that the AAP, which had stormed to power on the plank of fighting corruption and bringing good governance, had failed on both counts.
The Delhi excise policy 2021-22 came under the scanner after Delhi Lt Governor V.K. Saxena last month recommended a CBI probe into alleged irregularities in its implementation. He also suspended 11 excise officials in the matter.
Mr. Maken said that the Kejriwal government waived off liquor license fee of about ₹144 crore of the liquor mafia.
“This is totally a matter of corruption. This party came to power in the name of removing corruption, now Kejriwal and Sisodia are involved in corruption,” he said.
He further alleged that Mr. Kejriwal is protecting Mr. Sisodia because ultimately the money trail will lead directly to his door. “Kejriwal ji, in his earlier avatar, used to say that till the Minister resigns, there can be no fair investigation. We remind him of the words he used to say against an honest Prime Minister like Manmohan Singh,” he said.
The Delhi government’s excise policy, Mr. Maken said, was in direct contravention with Delhi’s Master Plan. 90% of these liquor vends were opened in residential areas. He also implicated the BJP- which runs the Municipal Corporation and the DDA which comes under the union government — in the scam. “The Municipal Corporation and the DDA could have sealed these shops, but they did not do it on time. That’s why questions are raised on the BJP as well,” Mr. Maken said.
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