BJP charges AAP with 'minority appeasement', demands campaign ban by EC on Kejriwal

The BJP on Wednesday filed a complaint with the Election Commission against AAP leaders including Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal alleging they were using Delhi Waqf Board funds for their "minority appeasement" politics.

A delegation of BJP leaders including Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, Sambit Patra and Leader of Opposition in Delhi Assembly Vijender Gupta met the Chief Election Commissioner and filed the complaint which alleged "mis-appropriation" of Waqffunds.

The Aam Aadmi Party(AAP) termed the complaint as "politically motivated".

Gupta claimed, "The Delhi Waqf Board passed a resolution during operation of model of code of conduct authorising withdrawal of money from bank account of the Board through signatures of any two among the chairman, any member and chief executive officer(CEO)," Gupta claimed.

This resolution was approved by Delhi Finance Minister although it violated an earlier memorandum of the government, dated June 3, 2015, as per which signature of the Waqf Board's CEO were necessary for such withdrawal of money, he said.

With the help of this change, Delhi Waqf Board issued cheques of increased salaries of Imams and Moazzins of mosques coming under the Board on April 25, Gupta claimed.

"The BJP delegation demanded that the Election Commission ban the poll campaign of Kejriwal, Finance Minister Kailash Gehlot and Waqf Board chairman Amanatullah Khan till May 10 for appeasement of a particular religious community," Gupta said.

Khan said that the memorandum for necessary signatures of CEO was issued in 2015 when the Board was chaired by a person whose authority was under dispute.

"The provision of signatures of any two out of the Waqf Board chairman, its members, and CEO, was always there. The memorandum of 2015 was a temporary arrangement. We passed the resolution to restore the earlier situation and there is no violation of model code of conduct in it," Khan said.

He claimed the BJP was "rattled" as it was "not getting votes" and was trying to raise the issue for "political polarisation."