Jaitley accuses Kejriwal of defaming him, records statement

Accusing Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal of making false statements against him, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Tuesday recorded his statement in a court here in connection with a criminal defamation complaint filed by him.

Jaitley has filed a complaint against Kejriwal and five other Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders.

Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Sanjay Khanagwal recorded the statement of Jaitley as the complainant witness in the case, who appeared before the court amidst tight security.

The proceeding was held in-camera for security reasons.

According to court sources, Jaitley told the court that Kejriwal and the five people had given "false" and "defamatory" statements against him, harming his reputation.

"The statements are made by accused with a malicious intention in order to lower my reputation among my friends, supporters and in eyes of the right thinking members of the public at large," said Jaitley while recording his statement.

He said: "The statements were made with the intention to deflect attention from a CBI investigation against a particular civil servant who was working with Kejriwal in relation to a complaint filed by a third party.

Jaitley requested the court to initiate proceedings against Kejriwal, Kumar Vishwas, Ashutosh, Sanjay Singh, Raghav Chadha and Deepak Bajpayee for defaming him.

The court also recorded the statement of chairman and editor-in-chief of India TV Rajat Sharma as complainant witness and posted the matter for February 3 for next hearing.