Delhi Floor Test: AAP Confident Of Majority As Arvind Kejriwal Govt Set To Face Trust Vote

The motion was submitted a day before Kejriwal was scheduled to appear in Rouse Avenue court in connection with an ED case alleging that the Delhi CM had persistently ignored the agency's summons.

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.

Source : PTI

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) will face trust vote in the Delhi Assembly on Saturday. Earlier, while moving a confidence motion, CM Kejriwal stated that it was necessary to demonstrate to the people that the House believes in the council of ministers. The motion was submitted a day before Kejriwal was scheduled to appear in Rouse Avenue court in connection with an Enforcement Directorate case alleging that the Delhi Chief Minister had persistently ignored the agency's summons.

On February 14, the ED served Kejriwal's sixth summons, asking him to appear before the central probe agency on February 19. After Kejriwal failed to attend on February 2, the agency filed a motion in court. On February 17, the Rouse Avenue court summoned Kejriwal and ordered his personal attendance, noting that the AAP national leader was "legally bound" to participate in the ED inquiry.

Speaker Ram Niwas Goel stated that the House will discuss the motion on Saturday. However, opposition leader Ramvir Singh Bidhuri said that Saturday's motion was not covered in the previously scheduled program.

“A discussion on the confidence motion has been scheduled on Saturday when the Rouse Avenue court has summoned Kejriwal (on February 17) over skipping ED summons in liquor scam. The sitting of the House was not fixed for February 17 according to the earlier schedule. The CM has got a discussion on confidence motion scheduled on Saturday so that he can use this as an excuse to avoid appearance before the court,” Bidhuri had said.

While moving the trust vote in the House on Friday, Kejriwal reiterated his claim that the Bharatiya Janata Party was attempting to poach Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLAs in order to overthrow his administration.

On January 27, the AAP supremo stated that the BJP had promised Rs 25 crore each to seven AAP MLAs in an attempt to overthrow his administration. The BJP responded sharply, calling the accusation "absurd and baseless". On January 30, Delhi BJP state president Virendra Sachdeva, opposition leader in the Delhi Assembly Ramvir Singh Bidhuri, and North East Delhi MP Manoj Tiwari filed a complaint with Delhi Police Commissioner Sanjay Arora, requesting an inquiry into the CM's statements. On February 3, it sparked a political drama and slugfest when a crime branch team visited at the CM's house to deliver a notice in connection with the MLA poaching charges.

The AAP has 62 MLAs in the 70-member Delhi Assembly, while the BJP has only eight.