Delhi excise policy case: Kejriwal skips ED summons, to campaign in poll-bound MP today

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who was to appear before ED today in connection with a money laundering case linked to the alleged excise policy scam, has decided to skip the questioning and rather head for a road show in poll-bound Madhya Pradesh.

Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal will not appear before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) today. He will hold a road show, along with Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann, in Singrauli, Madhya Pradesh today.

(File photo) pic.twitter.com/weeUzG0YNL

— ANI (@ANI) November 2, 2023

According to ANI news agency, Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal will not appear before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) today. He will hold a road show, along with Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann, in Singrauli, Madhya Pradesh today, added the news agency.

In reply to the ED notice earlier, Kejriwal termed his summoning in the case as “illegal and politically motivated”, claiming that the notice was sent at the behest of the BJP and was aimed at preventing him from campaigning in the poll-bound states.

“…Being the National Convener and a star campaigner of the AAP, I am required to travel for campaigning and to provide political guidance to my field workers of AAP. As the CM of Delhi, I have governance and official commitments for which my presence is required, particularly in view of Diwali coming up…Please recall the said summons, which is to say the least is vague and motivated and unsustainable in law,” Kejriwal wrote.

Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal responds to ED, “…Being the National Convener and a star campaigner of the AAP, I am required to travel for campaigning and to provide political guidance to my field workers of AAP. As the CM of Delhi, I have governance and official commitments for… pic.twitter.com/piPS5D5kMB

— ANI (@ANI) November 2, 2023

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate are probing the Delhi government’s now-scrapped excise policy for 2021-22 that allegedly favoured certain liquor dealers, an allegation that the AAP has strongly denied.

Based on a report of the chief secretary of the Delhi government, Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena recommended a CBI probe in July last year into alleged irregularities in the formulation and implementation of the policy.

The report cited various alleged irregularities including a waiver of Rs 144 crore to the retail licensees under the policy in the name of COVID-19-impacted sales and a refund of Rs 30 crore to a successful bidder for the airport zone who failed to obtain a no objection certificate for opening liquor stores there, officials said.

Another allegation was that the commission of wholesale licensees was raised from five per cent to 12 per cent in an instance of “quid pro quo”, they added.

With inputs from agencies