A day after being marshalled out from the special session of the Delhi Assembly, BJP MLAs held a mock house sitting on Sunday and slammed the AAP government over the alleged liquor "scam". The mock assembly session was held at the Ambedkar International Centre during which BJP members wore masks to impersonate Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his deputy Manish Sisodia and other ruling party MLAs. The eight BJP MLAs were marshalled out for the entire day over alleged video recording of the special session on Friday. During the moak session, the MLAs took turn to ask questions and slam the Kejriwal government over the alleged liquor "scam", which they could not do in the House on Friday. They asked why Kejriwal government withdrew it's excise policy after a CBI probe was recommended by the LG V K Saxena. "The Kejriwal government did not open a single school or hospital in entire East Delhi but dotted it with liquor stores everywhere," charged Rohtas Nagar MLA Jitendra ...
A day after Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma asked his Delhi counterpart Arvind Kejriwal to "do his homework" before commenting, the AAP supremo said on Friday his intention was not to "point out faults" and that "we have to learn from each other" to make the country stronger. Kejriwal had, on Wednesday, tweeted that a closure of schools is not a solution and there is a need to open more schools across the country, and shared a link to a news report claiming a "closure" of some schools in Assam. Sarma took to Twitter on Thursday to lash out at Kejriwal over the amalgamation of schools and asked him to "do his homework" before commenting. "Dear @ArvindKejriwal Ji-as usual you commented on something without any homework! Since my days as Education Minister till now, please note, the Assam government has established/taken over 8,610 new schools," Sarma had tweeted. He had also asked how many schools did the Delhi government start in the last seven years. The Aam Aadmi Party (
"The BJP has dismantled several governments and now they have turned towards Delhi. There is a serial killer of governments in our country. The pattern is the same," Kejriwal said on Friday.
Education may feature prominently in the words of the Aam Aadmi Party but it is "liquor" which drives their work, Union minister Anurag Thakur said on Friday as the BJP kept its attack on Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his deputy Manish Sisodia over the alleged excise scam. He said the AAP government in Delhi did not make "pathshala" (schools) but opened many "madhushala" (liquor vends) and questioned the "silence" of Kejriwal and Sisodia to the queries raised by him over the "scam", now being probed by the CBI. "The liquor scam has unmasked the AAP and showed how it is neck-deep in corruption. Why are its leaders not answering the questions raised by us over its excise policy," Thakur said. The AAP government should answer as to why Rs 144 crore was returned to liquor dealers besides Rs 30 crore earnest money, he asked. "If the excise policy was correct, then why was it withdrawn? The truth is serious corruption has occurred. Their health minister is in jail on corruptio
The BJP-led Centre is acting like a serial killer to eliminate state governments, Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia claimed on Friday, as he termed the CBI FIR against him "completely fake" and based on "mere sources". Speaking in the Delhi Assembly, Sisodia said the CBI does not have proof of any corruption in the city government's excise policy. He also alleged that the CBI conducted raids on his residence because the Delhi government's good work was being praised across the globe. The deputy chief minister, who is an accused in the CBI case related to the Delhi government's excise policy, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi "feels insecure" seeing good work done by others. "Prime Minister Modi feels insecure seeing good work by others. I have not seen a more insecure person than him. Had Arvind Kejriwal been the prime minister and I the education minister of a state, he would not have done something like this," Sisodia said, participating in a discussion on a government .
A day after Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma asked his Delhi counterpart Arvind Kejriwal to "do his homework" before commenting, the AAP supremo said on Friday his intention was not "point out faults" and that "we have to learn from each other" to make the country stronger. Kejriwal had, on Wednesday, tweeted that a closure of schools is not a solution and there is a need to open more schools across the country, and shared a link to a news report claiming a "closure" of some schools in Assam. Sarma took to Twitter on Thursday to lash out at Kejriwal over the amalgamation of schools and asked him to "do his homework" before commenting. "Dear @ArvindKejriwal Ji-as usual you commented on something without any homework! Since my days as Education Minister till now, please note, the Assam government has established/taken over 8,610 new schools," Sarma had tweeted. He had also asked how many schools did the Delhi government start in the last seven years. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP
Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia on Friday said the CBI FIR against him is "completely fake", and alleged that the BJP-ruled Centre is acting like a serial killer to eliminate state governments. He was speaking during the special session of the Delhi Assembly. Sisodia also attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying he "gets insecure" seeing good work done by others. "Prime Minister Modi gets insecure seeing good work by others. I have not seen a more insecure person than him. Had Arvind Kejriwal been the prime minister, he would not have done something like this had I been an education minister in some other government," Sisodia said in the Assembly. He said Arvind Kejriwal supported the prime minister in all the Centre's good initiatives but the prime minister did the opposite. Sisodia said CBI officers searched his clothes and even his children's clothes during the 14-hour raid at his house but found nothing. "The FIR against me is completely fake. I have committed
A total of 53 AAP MLAs out of 62 attended a meeting convened by party supremo and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday to discuss alleged poaching attempts by the BJP, sources said. The meeting that was scheduled to begin at 11 am was concluded within a few minutes, they said, adding that all the 62 legislators of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in Delhi were contacted ahead of the meeting at Kejriwal's residence. The sources said at least a dozen AAP MLAs had gone incommunicado ahead of the meeting. "We were not able to contact some of our MLAs as they were probably stuck in traffic, but we want to assure the people of Delhi that the AAP government will not fall. I want to assure you that all the legislators would be present at the meeting," senior party leader Saurabh Bhardwaj had told reporters outside the chief minister's residence. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders have dismissed the AAP's "poaching" claim, terming it a "public stunt" by the Kejriwal-led party. BJP M
Similar laws by Andhra Pradesh and Haryana have been challenged in courts, with critics arguing that they violate Article 16(2) and (3) of the Constitution
The Aam Aadmi Party on Thursday is likely to announce health-related "guarantees" for voters in Himachal Pradesh where polls are scheduled later this year. The announcement of the "second guarantee" will be made at Kapila Farm in Una district by Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia. The AAP, which is trying to make a foray in the state, had on August 17 given voters guarantees related to uplift of educational standards. It is expected that the "second guarantee" will be regarding improving healthcare facilities in the hill state. Mann and Sisodia had last week said that all schools in the state will be improved on the lines of those in Delhi, private ones will not be allowed to hike fees illegally, temporary teachers will be regularised, vacant posts of teacher will be filled and they won't be given any non-teaching work.
Earlier on Wednesday also CM Kejriwal had called for a meeting of the Political Affairs Committee at his residence
A special session of the Delhi Assembly will be held Friday amid a political slugfest over action by central probe agencies in the Kejriwal government's excise policy and the AAP accusing the BJP of trying to lure its MLAs. The Assembly session is scheduled to be held from 11 am on August 26, according to a document issued by the Delhi Assembly on Wednesday. Earlier in the day, AAP national convener and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said the BJP's attempt to "topple" his government was a "serious issue". The matter was in the AAP's political Affairs Committee on Wednesday evening. In a meeting of the committee held at Kejriwal's residence, the panel condemned the BJP's alleged efforts to lure its MLAs. The AAP leaders have alleged that four MLAs were offered money by the BJP to quit the party. The ED has registered a money laundering case against Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and others to probe the alleged irregularities in the Delhi Excise policy after taking
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said some of his MLAs have approached him alleging that they have been threatened and offered bribes to break the party and the AAP's political affairs committee will meet on Wednesday to take stock of the situation. A couple of days back, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia who is facing a CBI probe in connection with alleged corruption in the implementation of Excise Policy 2021-22, had claimed that he was offered the CM's post by the BJP and a withdrawal of all cases, if he quit AAP. "Some MLAs have approached me and told me that they have been threatened, offered bribes to break the party. This is a very serious matter. We will have a political affairs committee meeting over the issue at 4 pm today to take stock of the situation," he told reporters. AAP's national spokesperson and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh said the legislators -- Ajay Dutt, Sanjeev Jha, Somnath Bharati and Kuldeep -- have been approached by leaders of the Bharatiya Janata
After the Enforcement Directorate registered a money laundering case over the Delhi excise policy, the AAP on Tuesday said it had to happen as Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia rejected the BJP's offer to join it to free himself from charges in the matter. Sisodia is ready to go behind bars but he would not "bow down" before the BJP, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) added. Official sources said the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has registered a money laundering case to probe alleged irregularities in the excise policy allegedly involving Sisodia and others. The federal agency has filed the case under the criminal sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) after taking cognisance of a CBI FIR that has named Sisodia and 14 others. Reacting to the news about registration of the case by the ED, AAP national spokesperson and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh said in a tweet in Hindi, This had to happen. They (from BJP) had threatened Manish ji that if he does not join the BJP, the E
"Sisodia had recorded that call," source claimed, adding that there is no need to release the clip at this point of time. However, if the need arises, the recording will be released in public domain
BJP's national spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia said that Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal and his Deputy CM Manish Sisodia have no answer to the questions raised by the BJP on the irregularities in excise policy
Fearing that Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal and Deputy CM Manish Sisodia could be attacked during their visit to Gujarat on Monday and Tuesday, AAP has sought more police protection for the two leaders
The much-debated issue today has caught attention of common citizens across many states is the freebies politics that originated from the national capital Delhi in some ways.
Shiromani Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Singh Badal on Saturday demanded immediate release of compensation of Rs 50,000 for each cattle that died due to lumpy skin disease. In a statement here, the SAD president expressed shock that even as "thousands of cattle" had fallen prey to lumpy skin disease since July, the AAP government was still "indulging in propaganda and advertisements". "No effort is being made to take concrete steps at the ground level by coming to the aid of dairy farmers by compensating them for their cattle loss as well as preventing the further spread of the disease," Badal said. Lumpy skin disease infects cows and buffaloes mainly through vectors like blood-feeding insects. It leads to the formation of nodes on the animal's skin or hide that look like lumps, fever, runny nose, reduced milk yield and difficulty in eating. Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Gujarat and Andaman and Nicobar Islands have been hit by the outbreak of the disease. Badal said, "Farmers have los
The opposition Congress and SAD on Saturday demanded a probe into Punjab's excise policy, alleging it was a "sellout" and the state was "defrauded" like in Delhi where its liquor policy is under the CBI scanner. The demand in AAP-ruled Punjab came a day after CBI carried out searches at 31 places which included premises related to Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia as well as some bureaucrats and businessmen over alleged irregularities in Delhi Excise policy 2021-22. Congress Legislative Party leader in Punjab Assembly Partap Singh Bajwa along with other party leaders said they will meet the governor seeking a probe into the excise policy in Punjab. "Like Delhi, the liquor policy in Punjab is a sellout in which the AAP leaders in connivance with some senior officials have defrauded the state of thousands of crores of rupees, besides rendering hundreds of Punjabi traders jobless," Bajwa alleged. He also said the Congress will seek an NIA probe into "illegal sand mining going