AAP councillor among seven booked in Delhi under Public Gambling Act

An AAP councillor was among the seven individuals held in connection with an illegal betting racket, which was busted in the Swaroop Nagar area of outer north Delhi, an official said on Sunday.

Acting on a tip-off, a team from the Swaroop Nagar Police Station conducted a raid and booked seven people allegedly involved in gambling activities under Sections 3 (penalty for owning or keeping, or having charge of, a gaming-house) and four (penalty for being found in a gaming-house) of the Public Gambling Act, 1867.

Among those named in the case is Joginder Singh, alias Bunty, a sitting municipal councillor from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), police sources said.

A senior police officer confirmed that Singh's name surfaced during the initial investigation, and further inquiry is underway to determine his involvement.

Reacting to the incident, Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva stated that a new face of the Aam Aadmi Party leaders has emerged ever since the party lost power in the national capital.

He questioned former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and AAP's Delhi President Saurabh Bharadwaj, asking whether the councillor would be expelled from AAP or if the matter would be dismissed again as a 'BJP conspiracy'.

The Delhi BJP President further claimed that Singh, who was arrested allegedly with Rs 4.35 lakh in cash, is the same councillor who had brandished a revolver during the 2022 municipal election campaign, and was caught on video for the same.