AAP accuses BJP of vote buying, embezzlement ahead of Delhi Assembly polls

Addressing a press conference, AAP MP Sanjay Singh alleged that BJP has allocated Rs 10,000 per voter to its leaders for buying votes but only a fraction of the money reached the intended recipients

AAP on Friday alleged that the BJP is buying votes ahead of the Delhi assembly elections, claiming that the saffron party's Delhi leaders have embezzled funds meant for "buying votes with money".

Addressing a press conference, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh alleged that the BJP has allocated Rs 10,000 per voter to its leaders for buying votes but only a fraction of the money reached the intended recipients.

"Instead of distributing the full amount, BJP leaders allegedly handed out only Rs 1,000 or Rs 1,100 to voters, pocketing the remaining Rs 9,000 for themselves," Singh said.

In response, Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva dismissed the allegations as baseless, claiming they reflect AAP's desperation. "The words used by Arvind Kejriwal and his comrades in today's political statement reflect their uncultured social upbringing as well as lack of political ethics," Sachdeva said.

He added, "Since last September, AAP leaders have known they have lost political ground, but now they know even Arvind Kejriwal is losing, which has exasperated them."  AAP convener and former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal took to social media platform X to accuse the BJP of resorting to "buying votes" and banking on "money" to win the election.

"The abusive party is losing the Delhi elections badly. That is why it now wants to contest the elections by buying votes with money," Kejriwal said on X.

Former deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia described the situation as a "fraud" in a post on X and urged the Delhi residents to confront BJP leaders about the missing funds.

"The BJP has crossed all limits of fraud in the Delhi elections. The top leaders of the abusive party sent Rs 10,000 to distribute but to earn money, their leaders kept Rs 9,000 and distributed only Rs 1,100," Sisodia said on X.

He said people working with the BJP leaders know that the saffron party cannot win against Kejriwal in Delhi, "so why not take Rs 9,000 from the people of Delhi?" "People of Delhi, if they come to you asking for votes, ask them '? where is the other Rs 9,000?" Sisodia added.

Sanjay Singh further alleged that the BJP leaders had orchestrated this scheme, knowing they were likely to lose the election to AAP, an official statement said.

He called on the Delhiites to question the BJP over the alleged stolen money and expose their "corruption," it added.

Delhi minister Saurabh Bhardwaj, also present at the press conference, accused the BJP of undermining democracy not just through vote-buying but also through voter list manipulation. He raised concerns about thousands of legitimate voters being removed from the list and fake entries being added.

The AAP leaders have called on the Election Commission to intervene and ensure a free and fair election process in Delhi, the statement said.

BJP MP Ramvir Singh Bidhuri accused AAP leaders of corruption and said the announcement of Parvesh Sahib Singh as the BJP's candidate from New Delhi has changed the political climate against AAP. "The people of Delhi are set to expose AAP's scams and corruption by voting against them," Bidhuri stated.

The BJP leaders called AAP's statements a sign of their realization that their days in Delhi politics are numbered, asserting that the people of Delhi will reject them in the upcoming elections, an official statement of BJP said.

Delhiites will cast their votes on February 5 and the counting will take place on February 8.

An intense political battle is unfolding in the national capital, with assembly elections less than a month away and AAP aiming for a third consecutive term while the BJP pulls out all stops to defeat it and come back to power after more than 25 years.