The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has issued a third summons to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, directing him to appear before the agency on January 3, according to news agency ANI. Kejriwal, who skipped the second summons on Thursday, has accused political rivals of orchestrating the summons to stifle opposition voices in the run-up to the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. The ED has summoned Kejriwal for questioning in a Delhi excise policy-linked money laundering case. 



The chief minister, who left for an undisclosed location for a 10-day Vipassana meditation course on Wednesday, sent his reply to the ED on the same day, asserting that the summons lacked clarity regarding whether he was called as a witness, a suspect, or in his capacity as the chief minister, news agency PTI reported.


BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla slammed Kejriwal for skipping the agency summons saying, “When you have nothing to hide, you usually cooperate with the agencies, but that cannot be said in the case of Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal who is trying his best to escape from the long arms of the law... Now third time, the summon has been issued... Arvind Kejriwal knows he's the kingpin of the liquor scam... They know their actions are steeped in corruption and therefore they do not want to go for investigation."



"Arvind Kejriwal knows that he is the culprit, he is aware of the fact that he has no answers to ED's questions. He knows that the Delhi government incurred losses and capitalists made billions of rupees," BJP leader Manjinder Singh Sirsa told PTI. He further remarked that the Delhi Chief Minister is "absconding out of fear" but is using Vipassana as an excuse.


Meanwhile, Delhi minister and AAP leader Saurabh Bharadwaj took to X and posted, "Everyone knows that Hon’ble CM Arvind Kejriwal is in Vipasana. ED knows well that he can’t be served summons while he is without any communication during 10 days meditation. This summon appears more of a political posturing of Central Govt than a legal process."



Delhi Liquor Policy Case: Arvind Kejriwal's Previous Response To ED Summons


In his reply, Kejriwal expressed concerns about the timing of the summons, suggesting political motives behind it. "The timing of your summons leaves much to desire and strengthens my belief that the summons being sent to me are not based upon any objective or rational yardstick but for extraneous considerations at the behest of political rivals who wish to silence the voice of opposition," he stated, as quoted by PTI.


Kejriwal's Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is part of the opposition I.N.D.I.A. bloc, formed to challenge the BJP in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. The chief minister emphasised that the ED served the fresh summons without addressing the issues raised in his previous reply, deeming it a "fishing and roving enquiry."


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"I have a life of dignity, honour, and with complete transparency. As per my schedule, publicly known to all, from 20.12.2023, I would be attending the Vipassana meditation course which I have been attending annually for the last 25 years," he stated in his reply, as per PTI's report.


He underscored his constitutional position as an elected leader and the incumbent chief minister, emphasising his commitment to transparency and the lawful compliance of any summons. "But the summons is (I am advised) not in consonance with the law," he said, as mentioned by the report.


Delhi Minister Atishi, in a press conference on Thursday, alleged that the ED's investigation into the excise policy case aimed to impede AAP's growth and popularity. The ED has been probing the case for two years, and Atishi claimed it was unprecedented for a policy to be investigated to such an extent without finding evidence.


Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva countered, questioning why, if there was nothing wrong with the liquor policy, AAP leaders withdrew it when a CBI inquiry was ordered. He also pointed out that leaders like Manish Sisodia and Sanjay Singh were not obtaining bail.


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