India on Wednesday summoned a senior US diplomat and lodged a strong protest against a US state department official's remarks on the arrest of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. Ministry of External Affairs officials summoned the Acting Deputy Chief of Mission Gloria Berbena at its office in South Block here. The meeting lasted for more than 30 minutes. Reports had it that a US state department official had said that Washington "encouraged a fair, transparent and timely legal process for chief minister Kejriwal". The Enforcement Directorate has arrested Kejriwal in a money laundering case linked to the excise policy 'scam'. The case pertains to alleged corruption and money laundering in formulating and executing the Delhi government's excise policy for 2021-22 that was later scrapped.
Delhi minister Atishi on Wednesday said the arrest of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal will benefit the AAP electorally in the Lok Sabha polls as the party is getting a lot of sympathy. In an interview with PTI, Atishi termed the arrest of Kejriwal by the Enforcement Directorate in an excise policy-linked money laundering case as an attack on democracy that was "never seen before" in the democratic history of the country. "The good thing is that it has benefited us electorally," she said, adding before the arrest of Kejriwal, the result of Lok Sabha polls was a forgone conclusion as people were of the view that the BJP was going to win. "But after Kejriwal's arrest, the level of public sympathy has gone up for us. There is just one sentiment that the BJP has gone one step too far. So, I would feel it has benefitted us electorally," Atishi told PTI. She said the upcoming Lok Sabha polls have become a 'People vs BJP' election. "This election has become a very different kind of electio
Sushil Kumar Rinku was AAP's sole Lok Sabha member and was already announced as the party's candidate from Jalandhar
Sunita Kejriwal condemns her husband's arrest, says he will reveal truth about money in 'liquor scam' in court on March 28
Stressing that no money was found in multiple Enforcement Directorate raids, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's wife Sunita on Wednesday said her husband would do a "big expose" on the alleged excise policy scam in court on March 28. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener was arrested by the ED on March 21 in an excise policy-linked money laundering case and subsequently remanded to the agency's custody till March 28. Sunita Kejriwal in a digital briefing said her husband will reveal the truth on March 28 and also present evidence. "Despite two years of probe, the ED has not been able to find even one paisa in evidence. They raided chief minister's residence but got just Rs 73,000," she said. "My husband issued directions to Water Minister Atishi while in custody. The Centre had issues with it. Do they want to ruin Delhi?" Sunita Kejriwal asked, adding that her husband was very sad over the issue. She said Kejriwal was a brave and genuine person and his resolve was strong
Proceedings of the Delhi Assembly were adjourned for 15 minutes shortly after the House convened on Tuesday as AAP MLAs protested against Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's arrest in a money laundering case. Before the commencement of the session, the AAP MLAs staged a protest outside the assembly and raised slogans demanding Kejriwal's immediate release. Party leaders, including Atishi and Saurabh Bharadwaj, were among those who were part of the protest. They were dressed in yellow T-shirts with slogans like "Main Bhi Kejriwal" and "Modi ka Sabse Bada Dar Kejriwal" written on them. "Today, all AAP MLAs are protesting against the illegal arrest of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. Efforts are being made to end democracy in the country. For the first time in the history of the country, a sitting CM has been arrested and that too just before the national elections," Atishi told reporters. Kejriwal was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate last week in connection with the money launderi
Delhi High Court Acting Chief Justice Manmohan on Wednesday cautioned lawyers against staging protests on court premises against the arrest of Chief Minister and AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal, saying the consequences would be "severe". The Aam Aadmi Party's legal cell has called for a protest in district courts here on Wednesday following Kejriwal's arrest by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a Delhi excise policy-linked money laundering case. "Consequences would be severe for organising protest in court. Courts cannot be withheld. Courts cannot be stopped. We cannot take away someone's right to approach the court," Justice Manmohan said. "If someone does it, they would do it at their own peril," he asserted. The issue was mentioned before a bench of the acting chief justice and Justice Manmeet P S Arora by advocate Vaibhav Singh who said that court premises cannot be used for political purposes. Justice Manmohan said he would take up the issue tomorrow, hoping that "sen
Earlier on Tuesday evening, Sunita Kejriwal met with the Delhi Chief Minister at the office of the Directorate of Enforcement (ED)
The SAD-BJP alliance could have been potent with the Bhagwant Mann-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government facing significant anti-incumbency
The Lower House held 273 sittings, the fewest for a full-term Lok Sabha; 240 bills tabled, 222 saw the light of the day
Veteran numbers decline amid rising number of total candidates
AAP MLAs and office bearers plan to march to the Prime Minister's residence on Tuesday, continuing their protest against the CM's arrest
The protest planned by the Aam Aadmi Party to protest against the arrest of Arvind Kejriwal by ED last week will affect Delhi traffic, the police informed
On 21 March, Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal was arrested by ED on corruption charges that Aam Aadmi Party rejects
From AAP's plans to launch protests across the capital to Bengal BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari complaining to EC against TMC, catch all the latest updates from around the world here
Since Kejriwal's arrest on Thursday, the AAP leadership has felt the need to underscore that its legitimacy to run the party continues to come from Kejriwal
Delhi BJP MP Manoj Tiwari on Sunday hit out at the Aam Aadmi party supremo Arvind Kejriwal, calling his instruction from ED custody to the water minister scripted and his arrest a cause of celebration for the people of the city. Tiwari said, "In ED's custody there is a culprit and taking his reference today a script has been written that water and sewer-related facilities in Delhi are disorganised." Tiwari's remarks come after Water Minister Atishi, in a press conference, informed media that she received directions from the Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal late Saturday, from ED custody, on running the city government. Kejriwal was arrested by the ED on Thursday from his official residence. A court on Friday sent him to the central agency's custody till March 28. "This (Kejriwal's direction) comes after no one in Delhi came to his support. The public didn't express sorrow at his arrest. In fact, they are celebrating, distributing sweets, and bursting crackers that the man who m
Aam Aadmi Party workers on Sunday demonstrated on the ITO foot-over bridge in protest against the arrest of their leader, Arvind Kejriwal. The party workers shouted slogans against the BJP, which rules the Centre, and thus, governs the probe agency Enforcement Directorate which arrested the Delhi Chief Minister on Thursday. The protesters, who hung a banner that read "Main Bhi Kejriwal" from the bridge, were removed from the spot by the Delhi Police. "We removed five to six workers from a foot-over bridge in ITO to maintain law and order," a senior police officer said. Meanwhile, Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva also led a protest against Kejriwal, demanding strict punishment against him in the excise policy case, in which he has been arrested. The party workers also burned an effigy of the Aam Aadmi Party leaders.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said his Delhi counterpart Arvind Kejriwal effectively invited his own arrest by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) due to his repeated failure to respond to summonses, suggesting that it might have been a tactic to garner political sympathy. Sarma emphasised that when a person disregards nine summonses from the ED, it indicates a deliberate invitation for arrest. He remarked that if Kejriwal had complied with the initial summonses, his arrest might have been avoided. Speaking to reporters at the state BJP headquarters here after a poll-preparedness meeting on Saturday, Sarma said, "If the ED serves someone nine summonses and that person doesn't show up, it is evident that he is inviting his arrest. The ED didn't arrest Kejriwal, he invited the agency to arrest him." The BJP leader cited the examples of politicians such as Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi, who appeared before the ED when they were issued summonses, implying that Kejriwal's action
Ahead of a planned protest by AAP leaders and workers in the national capital on Sunday, the Delhi Police has ramped up security measures, officials said. This comes after AAP decided to take out a candle march and burn the effigy of the BJP government against the arrest of party supremo and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal by Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday. "We got information that workers and leaders of AAP will hold protest. To ensure law and order situation, we have stepped up security in the national capital. We will ensure deployment of paramilitary forces along with Delhi Police personnel. "Senior officers will continue to monitor the entire situation in their districts. Directions have been issued to the SHOs to keep a strict vigil in their area and to inform their senior officers immediately, if they get to know about any protest," a senior police officer said. Heavy personnel deployment and multi-layer barricading have already been put in place on roads lead