‘Lies after lies’: AAP says ED raids on Satyendar Jain aimed to divert int’l backlash

Delhi chief minister Kejriwal, deputy Manish Sisodia and senior AAP leader Sanjay Singh reacted strongly to the ED raids on Satyendar Jain and alleged aides.

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Sanjay Singh on Tuesday said the raids by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on jailed Delhi minister Satyendar Jain are a witch hunt on the party and its “honest minister” to “hide the international insult India is facing” because of the BJP.

Delhi minister Satyendar Jain leaving with an ED team from the Rouse Avenue court complex after a judge remanded him in ED custody. (ANI File)

Addressing a presser, the senior AAP leader said, “An interrogation was conducted, but nothing was recovered from Jain. The ED could not find any corruption link. When asked in the high court, they said there is no FIR against Satyendar Jain. Then why has the ED arrested him?”

Calling him an honest person, Singh went on to say, “The whole country is talking about the Delhi health model and Satyendar Jain has a huge role to play in it. Today, he has been arrested… ED has insulted him, his family, wife and kids."

“Modi ji, you are diverting the international insult that India is facing (over remarks by BJP leaders on Prophet Mohammed),” Singh added.

The ED has seized "unexplained" cash amounting to ₹2.85 crore and 133 gold coins after its day-long raids conducted on the premises of Jain and his alleged associates as part of a money-laundering investigation against him. The ED said those raided were "either directly or indirectly assisted" the minister in the process of money laundering.

Soon after, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal took to Twitter to state that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is after the AAP with all his might. In a tweet in Hindi, he wrote, “The Prime Minister is after the Aam Aadmi Party with all his might – especially the Delhi and Punjab governments. Lies after lies, lies after lies. You have the power of all agencies, but God is with us.”

The AAP leadership has claimed that the ED could not find anything from Jain's house.

“The BJP has crossed all limits of lies and shamelessness! Only ₹2.79 lakh have been found in Satyendra Jain's house. ED searched for hours, but did not find a single evidence. Now, by calling anyone a close aide of Satyendra Jain, the BJP is making false allegations against him. How low can the BJP stoop now,” asked deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia in a tweet.

Singh, in a tweet, said, “Forcibly telling that some people are close to him to implicate Jain… Only ₹2.79 lakh were found at Jain’s house. Everything else is a lie.”

AAP MLA Saurabh Bhardwaj said that even the same was not seized. The seizure memo of the ED raid was given to the wife and daughter of Satyendar Jain. In the memo, it was mentioned that various documents, one digital device, and ₹2,79,200 was recovered during the search. However the same were not seized,” Bhardwaj wrote in a tweet.

Jain, 57, was arrested on May 30 under provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and remanded in the ED’s custody till June 9.