AAP candidate's son says his father paid Rs 6 cr for ticket; father refutes claim (2nd Lead)

Just a day before polling in Delhi, the son of an Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidate made a sensational allegation on Saturday, claiming that his father had paid Rs 6 crore to party chief and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to get the ticket.

The allegation was made by Uday, son of AAP's West Delhi candidate Balbir Singh Jakhar, while speaking to reporters here.

Jakhar, however, refuted the claim and said that he was not in contact with his son since long.

While speaking to the media, Uday alleged, "He (Jakhar) paid Rs 6 crore to (Arvind) Kejriwal for the ticket... My father told me that he paid the amount to Kejriwal."

He went on to say, "The more shocking part is that Kejriwal, who was part of the anti-corruption movement, is so corrupt and taking money."

Reacting to the claims, the West Delhi candidate of AAP told the media, "All the allegations against me are baseless. I have never met or interacted with my son in the recent past. This is an attempt to tarnish my image just before the polls."

Jakhar added, "He (Uday) was born and brought up in his maternal grandparents house. I was divorced in 2009. We don't meet frequently. He calls me once in a month or so demanding things."

He further said that he had separated from his first wife in 2001 and Uday was born after that.

"I got a mutual divorce in 2009 and Uday never lived with me. A teenage boy is often misguided. It's very sad that my political opponents have designed a conspiracy by using him as a tool for political interests," Jakhar said.

He also said that Uday did not use the surname Jakhar and that he was not sure whether his son had passed the Class XII examination.

Uday added that this was not the only thing he wanted to tell the world to clear his conscience.

He alleged that his father was among those who tried to save Congress leader Sajjan Kumar, who was awarded life term by the Delhi High Court in a 1984 anti-Sikh riots case.

"My father also decided to represent Sajjan Kumar in court. He was paid huge amount to bail him out," Uday claimed.

Insisting that he did not have affiliation with any political party, Uday claimed that he had credible evidence that his father had paid for the ticket.

--IANS

nks/arm