AAP claims federal agencies plan to arrest Kejriwal, cite Cong pact as reason

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Friday cited “reliable information” and claimed the federal agencies planned to arrest chief minister Arvind Kejriwal as the party’s imminent national poll pact with the Congress has rattled the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and disturbed its political calculations.
“The AAP and Congress alliance has been finalised…multi-state seat sharing has been agreed upon. Amid the news that the alliance will be announced today [Friday] or tomorrow [Saturday], all of a sudden the ED [Enforcement Directorate] served seventh notice to Kejriwal,” said Delhi minister Saurabh Bharadwaj.
He added not only the ED but the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) also planned to arrest Kejriwal and that a notice for it was ready. “The notice will be delivered to Kejriwal today [Friday], and the CBI will also intensify its efforts to arrest Kejriwal. We have information that in two to three days, Kejriwal will be arrested.”
Read more: ED issues 7th summons to CM Arvind Kejriwal in Delhi excise policy probe
Bharadwaj’s ministerial colleague, Atishi, said the ED has sent seven notices but is unable to arrest Kejriwal. “…so the BJP is now going to use the CBI.” She added the CBI will first arrest Kejriwal before the ED takes him into custody, citing a pattern in such arrests.
AAP’s national general secretary (organisation) Sandeep Pathak said the BJP believed the alliance with Congress was not happening. “The finalisation of the alliance has shocked the BJP. The alliance has disturbed their political equation in Gujarat, Delhi, and other states. In the renewed political situation, they have brought the CBI to the forefront with the plan to arrest Kejriwal.”
He said they were being asked to end the alliance or else Kejriwal would be arrested. “They have not done the political calculations properly. The day Kejriwal is arrested, all well-meaning people will hit the streets,” Pahtak said. He added AAP was not going to be scared. “We are doing the alliance for the country and not for personal interests.”
Read more: ‘Arvind Kejriwal will be arrested in 3-4 days if…’: AAP leader’s new claim
The ED issued the seventh summons to Kejriwal, asking him to appear before the agency on February 26 in connection with its investigation into a money laundering case linked to alleged irregularities in the now-scrapped 2021-22 Delhi excise police. Kejriwal has skipped six summons since November calling them “illegal and politically motivated”.
There was no immediate response from the federal agencies.
Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva rejected AAP’s claims as baseless and said they reflected Kejriwal’s frustration. “The fear of getting punishment for corruption in the liquor scam, hopelessness before the Lok Sabha polls, and disappointment is visible. The people plan to punish AAP for corruption as well…Kejriwal is trying to spread rumours of his arrest to get sympathy. The people of Delhi have decided to give over 70% votes to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the Lok Sabha polls,” Sachdeva said.