Following issuance of fresh summons to chief minister Arvind Kejriwal by Enforcement Directorate (ED) in the Delhi excise policy-linked money laundering case, BJP on Saturday alleged that he skipped the earlier summons as he was scared of answering the queries of the investigating agency.
On the other hand, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) reiterated that BJP was “misusing” ED to stop its national convener Arvind Kejriwal from campaigning for coming Lok Sabha polls. The ED issued summons for the fourth time to Kejriwal for questioning in the Delhi excise policy-linked money laundering case, official sources said on Saturday. He has been asked to depose before the agency at its headquarters here on 18 January, they said. According to Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva, every time the ED summons Kejriwal, he skips the investigation and makes plans to visit one place or the other. “He is running away from the investigation as he is scared of answering the questions”, he added.
Kejriwal skipping the summons clearly indicated his involvement in the money laundering case, he alleged. On the other hand, Delhi’s Environment Minister Gopal Rai alleged that BJP was “misusing” the ED to stop the Delhi Chief Minister from campaigning for the Lok Sabha elections. Talking to the media here on Saturday, Rai questioned the timing of the ED’s summons, saying that it came ahead of Kejriwal’s Goa tour from 18 January.
The fresh summons to Delhi CM follows the third summons which he skipped last week. Kejriwal has so far skipped summons issued by the ED on three occasions including on 3 January, 2 November and on 22 December, calling them “illegal and politically motivated.”