Kejriwal and Sisodia should get Bharat Ratna for ‘new category for corruption’, Cong mocks AAP leaders

India

pti-PTI

New
Delhi,
Aug
24:
The
Congress
on
Tuesday
attacked
the
Aam
Aadmi
Party
over
alleged
irregularities
in
excise
policy
in
Delhi,
saying
Chief
Minister
Arvind
Kejriwal
and
his
deputy
should
get
the
Bharat
Ratna
if
there
is
a
new
category
for
corruption.

The
Congress
alleged
that
“Kejriwal
and
company”
have
traversed
the
distance
from
honesty
and
transparency
to
corruption
in
a
very
short
span
of
time
and
asked
the
AAP
convenor
why
he
was
not
sacking
his
tainted
ministers.

Addressing
a
press
conference
at
the
AICC
headquarters
here,
Delhi
Pradesh
Congress
Committee
chief
Anil
Chaudhary
said
that
in
the
first
FIR
by
the
CBI,
Deputy
Chief
Minister
Manish
Sisodia
has
been
recognised
as
the
“number
one
corrupt”
and
this
is
the
certificate
of
AAP’s
“hardcore
honesty”.

The
Congress
has
been
increasingly
targeting
AAP
after
Arvind
Kejriwal’s
party
ousted
it
in
Punjab
and
was
also
threatening
to
make
inroads
in
poll-bound
Gujarat
and
Himachal
Pradesh,
where
the
BJP
and
Congress
have
dominated
the
political
scene
till
now.
The
party
was
routed
in
the
last
two
assembly
polls
in
Delhi
which
were
swept
by
the
AAP.

AAP
leaders
were
offered
Rs
20
crore
to
join
BJP
says
Sisodia
in
explosive
claim

Slamming
Kejriwal,
Chaudhary
said
the
chief
minister,
who
raised
questions
on
the
excise
policy
of
his
predecessor
and
Congress
leader
Sheila
Dikshit,
has
returned
to
her
policy
and
found
it
to
be
correct.
“Will
those
who
question
Sheila
Dikshit
ji’s
policies
apologise
to
her
today,”
he
asked.
Chaudhary
said
if
“a
new
category
is
started,
which
is
unlikely,
then
Arvind
Kejriwal
and
Manish
Sisodia
must
get
‘Bharat
Ratna’ in
the
category
of
corruption.”

He
was
taking
a
swipe
at
Kejriwal’s
recent
remarks
that
Sisodia
deserves
the
Bharat
Ratna
for
improving
the
education
standard
in
schools,
but
is
being
hounded
by
the
Centre
due
to
political
reasons.
“When
the
people
of
Delhi
were
struggling
for
oxygen
cylinders
and
beds
in
hospitals
during
the
Corona
period,
Kejriwal
was
working
on
liquor
policy
with
the
liquor
mafia,”
the
Congress’
Delhi
unit
chief
alleged.

“What
was
the
deal
between
the
Lieutenant
Governor
of
BJP
and
the
Chief
Minister
of
Delhi
that
this
liquor
policy
was
passed,”
he
asked.
Congress
spokesperson
Ragini
Nayak
said
AAP
must
do
a
press
conference
to
explain
to
people
whether
their
liquor
policy
is
right
or
not.
“If
it
is
right,
then
why
did
they
get
scared
with
the
news
of
a
CBI
inquiry?
Why
did
they
have
to
take
back
the
policy
which
they
said
was
beneficial
in
making
Delhi
revenue
surplus,”
she
said.

If
the
policy
is
wrong
then
why
shouldn’t
inquiry
take
place
against
Sisodia,
she
asked.
She
also
asked
that
if
there
is
an
attempt
to
break
the
AAP
government,
why
does
it
not
reveal
the
phone
number
and
name
of
the
persons
involved.

This
is
serious
matter:
Kejriwal
on
AAP’s
claims
about
BJP
offer

“Why
is
Arvind
Kejriwal
not
sacking
his
corrupt
ministers,”
she
said.
Chaudhary
accused
AAP
of
playing
the
‘New
York
Times’
card
and
talking
about
education
and
health
policy
when
questions
are
being
raised
about
its
liquor
policy.
He
said
it
was
the
Congress
that
had
first
started
the
fight
against
excise
policy
irregularities.
“We
have
solid
proof
of
this.
We
first
wanted
to
wake
up
this
government,
but
when
it
did
not
wake
up,
we
had
to
complain
in
writing
to
the
police
commissioner,”
Chaudhary
said.

He
also
blamed
the
BJP
for
remaining
silent
when
alleged
corruption
through
the
Delhi
liquor
policy
was
taking
place.
The
Central
Bureau
of
Investigation(CBI)
had
conducted
raids
in
the
2021-22
excise
policy
case
on
August
19
and
covered
the
residence
of
Sisodia
in
Delhi,
that
of
IAS
officer
and
former
Delhi
excise
commissioner
Arava
Gopi
Krishna
and
19
other
locations
across
seven
states
and
Union
Territories.
Sisodia
holds
multiple
portfolios
in
the
Delhi
government
including
that
of
excise
and
education
The
Delhi
excise
policy
scheme
came
under
the
scanner
after
Delhi
Lt
Governor
V
K
Saxena
last
month
recommended
a
CBI
probe
into
alleged
irregularities
in
the
implementation
of
Delhi’s
Excise
Policy
2021-22.

He
also
suspended
11
excise
officials
in
the
matter.
The
CBI
inquiry
was
recommended
on
the
findings
of
the
Delhi
chief
secretary’s
report
filed
in
July
showing
prima
facie
violations
of
the
GNCTD
Act
1991,
Transaction
of
Business
Rules
(ToBR)-1993,
Delhi
Excise
Act-2009
and
Delhi
Excise
Rules-2010,
officials
said.

According
to
officials,
the
report
had
shown
prima
facie
violations,
including
“deliberate
and
gross
procedural
lapses”,
to
provide
post-tender
“undue
benefits
to
liquor
licensees”
through
the
policy.
It
is
also
alleged
that
undue
financial
favours
were
extended
to
liquor
licensees
after
the
tenders
were
awarded,
causing
loss
to
the
exchequer.