Police notice a gimmick... will respond to ED if court wants, says Kejriwal

When asked about the ED moving court against him for non-compliance of summons, the Delhi chief minister said that they will respond, “if the court seeks a response”

Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday slammed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), terming as “gimmickry” the Delhi Police’s crime branch notice to him over his allegations that the BJP was trying to poach Aam Aadmi Party MLAs.

CM Arvind Kejriwal with pilgrims departing for Tirupati at Thyagaraj Stadium in the city on Monday. (Sanchit Khanna/HT Photo)

He also said that he would respond if the court asks him to about the Enforcement Directorate seeking legal recourse citing his non-compliance to summons issued in connection with the excise case.

“They asked who approached to poach AAP MLAs. Is this hidden from anyone?” Kejriwal said over the crime branch notice. “The entire country knows it. The entire world knows it. In the country only one party is buying everyone. Those who poached the MLAs in Goa, Maharashtra, Karnataka.... did it. Those who sent the crime branch officers are behind it. There is no need to ask. The letter that they brought did not mention any first information report. Such drama will not let the country progress, work for the welfare of the country and the society should be done the way we are doing,” Kejriwal said on the sidelines of a function at Thyagaraj Stadium where he interacted with a group of senior citizens who later embarked on a Delhi government-funded pilgrimage to Tirupati Balaji.

READ | Arvind Kejriwal skips summons again, ED approaches court

“So, this gimmickry will not help the country. We should work for the country and society. Like we are doing today. We have sent people on pilgrimage, it is beneficial, people will be happy and there will find peace. The country will progress.... We will submit a written reply (to the Crime Branch),” Kejriwal added.

When asked about the ED moving court against him for non-compliance of summons, the Delhi chief minister said that they will respond, “if the court seeks a response”.

Kejriwal has skipped all five ED summons — the most recent of which was on Friday — he has been issued in the case, calling them “illegal” and alleging a ploy by the BJP to arrest him and topple the Delhi government.

On Saturday, a crime branch team reached the CM’s official residence to hand over the notice asking him to join the investigation. However, an argument broke out between the officers who went to serve the notice and the officials from the CM office. While the former insisted on handing over the notice to Kejriwal in person, the latter objected to it, saying that all other notices are sent through email.

“I felt very strange and felt pity for the officer...A youth joins the police service with ideals of serving the country, catch criminals, check corruption...but they were asked to indulge in drama. The crime branch officers were made to do drama outside my house for five hours, they did the same outside Atishi’s (Delhi minister) residence. They must have felt bad. Their political masters insulted the entire Delhi Police yesterday,” Kejriwal said.

Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva said that under the AAP, Delhi is far behind other metros in providing public facilities such as education and health services, accessible public transport, and cleanliness, but ahead of all in government corruption. “Kejriwal says every day that the AAP’s MLAs are being lured by the BJP, but despite repeated requests they are not showing any evidence. Kejriwal criticizes every agency from ED to Delhi Police and even the courts...but he himself tries to mislead the public by lying day and night,” Sachdeva said.

Later in the day, the CM office issued a statement that under the Mukhyamantri Teerth Yatra Yojana, the 89th train with 780 pilgrims departed for Tirupati.

“I have always considered people of Delhi as my family, so facilitating pilgrimage for our elders is my duty and responsibility. I strive to ensure that every elderly person goes on a pilgrimage at least once,” the statement quoted Kejriwal as saying during the interaction.

The scheme, launched by Kejriwal on July 12, 2019, offers free pilgrimage to senior citizens (those above 60 years of age) who are residents of Delhi.

The government also provides paramedical staff during the journey, besides attendants, whose cost is borne by the state government. So far, more than 84,000 people from Delhi have visited various pilgrimage sites on 88 trains -- 90% of these pilgrims were women, the statement said.

The Delhi chief minister on Monday appealed to eligible people to avail the scheme. “We are not allowing a shortage of resources for this. We will arrange whatever resources are needed. There is a shortage of trains. We use all the trains provided by the central government and send the elderly people on pilgrimage,” Kejriwal said, according to the statement.