Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers, led by party MP Dr Harsh Vardhan, staged a protest outside Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's residence in the capital on Monday, 22 August, demanding the dismissal of Deputy CM Manish Sisodia, who is being probed by the CBI in connection with the Delhi excise policy case.
Several senior BJP leaders, including the party's Delhi chief Adesh Gupta, were detained by the police amid sloganeering against the AAP, as per reports.
Gupta said that Kejriwal should expel Sisodia from his Cabinet as he is "accused number one" in the case registered by the CBI. "Kejriwal is the kingpin of the whole scam in which the liquor mafia was allowed to loot at the expense of the state exchequer," he alleged.
“A man like Manish Sisodia, who is in collusion with the liquor mafia, has no place in the BJP," Gupta said.
Sharing visuals from the protests, Leader of Opposition in the Delhi Legislative Assembly, Ramvir Singh Bhiduri, tweeted, "Delhi state BJP staged a massive demonstration at the chief minister's residence demanding the sacking of Deputy CM Manish Sisodia, who was involved in the liquor scam worth thousands of crores."
The protest also saw effigies of Sisodia and Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain, who was previously arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), being burnt close to the CM’s residence as well.
'Kejriwal Looks at Himself in the Mirror and...': BJP Demands Response Within 24 Hours
At a press conference held on Monday, BJP national spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia said, "It has become clear that Arvind Kejriwal and Manish Sisodia have no answer to the questions of the people."
"BJP is strongly exposing the corruption and fanatical dishonesty of Aam Aadmi Party," he added.
Bhatia also said, "Arvind Kejriwal looks at himself in the mirror and thinks of himself as a big leader. But when you look at him, he will come across as dishonest because he is not answering the public's questions."
"We give 24 hours to Arvind Kejriwal to answer questions on charges of corruption in the Delhi excise policy," he stated.
The BJP leader further said:
"Arvind Kejriwal gives a certificate of staunch honesty to Manish Sisodia. But nowadays, to whoever Kejriwal gives a certificate of fanatical honesty definitely goes to jail. After deliberation, you will bow before the law and your corruption will also stop."
"Arvind Kejriwal, if you are honest then you answer the question that the public is asking. After 24 hours, a tweet came in reply and the same preposterous response in it too," Bhatia said.
The lottery system wasn't followed by the Kejriwal government and zones were awarded to 'some' industrialists, which is worrisome, he alleged. "The silence of Kejriwal on corruption charges in excise policy proves that he is a hardcore dishonest person ('kattar beiman')," Bhatia alleged.
BJP MP Ramesh Bidhuri who was also present asked why Kejriwal was not answering the questions being raised on the excise policy.
The CBI Case Against Manish Sisodia
The CBI has filed an FIR against 13 people and two companies in connection with the alleged violations of rules and procedural lapses in the implementation of the excise policy.
The CBI had raided the residence of Sisodia, who also holds the excise portfolio in the Kejriwal government, on Saturday.
The FIR stated that Sisodia, the then Delhi Excise Commissioner Arava Gopi Krishna, and two other senior excise department officials were “instrumental in recommending and taking decisions pertaining to the excise policy for the year 2021-22 without the approval of competent authority, with an intention to extend undue favours to the licencees post-tender."
The CBI also raided around 20 other locations in Delhi-NCR, including the premises of Arava Gopi Krishna. Excise officials, liquor company executives, and dealers, along with unknown public servants and private persons, have also been booked in the case.
The Kejriwal government had withdrawn the excise policy after Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena recommended a CBI probe into its implementation last month. Neither the Kejriwal government nor the AAP has given any reason behind scrapping of the policy.
(With inputs from PTI and ANI.)
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