Last Updated: February 02, 2024, 09:49 IST
The Delhi CM is scheduled to participate in a protest along with his Punjab counterpart Bhagwant Mann today (Image: PTI File)
The ED issued a fresh and fifth summons to Kejriwal on Wednesday after he skipped four earlier summonses issued by the federal agency over the last four months
Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convener Arvind Kejriwal will skip the fifth summons by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for questioning on Friday in a money laundering case linked to the Delhi excise policy, according to party sources.
The Delhi CM is scheduled to participate in a protest along with his Punjab counterpart Bhagwant Mann today (February 2) against the alleged ‘vote ki chori’ (stealing of votes) in Chandigarh mayoral polls. Kejriwal will lead AAP’s protest outside the BJP headquarters in Delhi at 11 am.
In a setback to the Congress and the AAP — both INDIA bloc members — the BJP on Tuesday swept the Chandigarh mayoral polls. The AAP-Congress combine alleged that the presiding officer had tampered with the ballot papers.
ED’s 5th Summons To Kejriwal
The ED issued a fresh and fifth summons to Kejriwal on Wednesday after he skipped four earlier summonses issued by the federal agency over the last four months. The summons came as ED arrested Hemant Soren on Wednesday minutes after he tendered his resignation as Jharkhand Chief Minister.
Kejriwal skipped ED summonses for November 2 and December 21 in 2023 and January 3 and January 18 this year. He had called these notices “illegal”.
Though the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) remained tight-lipped about whether the Delhi CM will appear before the probe agency, sources in the party said that he is likely to skip the summons this time too.
The AAP has maintained that its legal team is studying the summons issued to Kejriwal in connection with the excise policy-linked money laundering case.
It is alleged that the Delhi government’s excise policy for 2021-22 to grant licences to liquor traders allowed cartelisation and favoured certain dealers who had allegedly paid bribes for it, a charge repeatedly refuted by the AAP.
The policy was subsequently scrapped and Delhi Lt Governor VK Saxena recommended a Central Bureau of Investigation probe, following which the ED registered a case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
