MLA poaching claim: Crime Branch serves fresh notice on Kejriwal, asks him to respond by tomorrow

New Delhi [India], February 4 (ANI): Delhi Police Crime Branch on Sunday served a fresh notice on Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, asking him to respond to his charges of poaching attempts by the BJP with evidence by Monday.

The Crime Branch also served a notice on AAP leader and minister Atishi in the poaching claim case, asking her to respond within three days.

“An inquiry is being conducted by the Crime Branch of Delhi police, on a complaint received in respect of the allegations made by you that the BJP has offered Rs 25 crore each to the sitting MLAs of AAP for leaving the party and joining the BJP. These allegations were posted by you on X on January 27, 2024,” a letter undersigned by Pankaj Arora, ACP of Central Range Crime said.

“The Crime Branch has written in the notice that from your tweet it appears that you have evidence and information related to a cognizable crime, please submit the information and answers to the Crime Branch by February 5,” it added.

Earlier in the day, a Crime Branch team arrived at the door of AAP leader Atishi to serve a notice in connection with her claim that the BJP was trying to prise away the party’s MLAs through cash inducements and topple the government as part of ‘Operation Lotus 2.0’.

Meanwhile, weighing in on the notices to the AAP convenor and Atishi, fellow party leader Jasmine Shah told ANI that they have no mention of the FIR filed by the BJP in connection with the poaching claim but are merely some letters on a piece of white paper.

“Yesterday, a team of Delhi Police Crime Branch was at the residence of CM Arvind Kejriwal. They wanted to serve a notice on him. They waited five hours before handing the notice to an official from the CM’s office. The notice does not have a word on the FIR and neither is it a summons. It doesn’t even say anything about a preliminary inquiry. There is also no mention of any section of the IPC or CrPC. All it has are words inscribed on a piece of white paper,” he said.

However, hitting back at the AAP, BJP leader Shehzad Poonawalla said Kejriwal and his ‘henchmen’ are not just the ‘un-crowned kings of corruption’ but have also become ‘fugitives’.

“When allegations are made against them, they are on the run; when they make allegations against others, they hit and run. If your allegations are not baseless and you have proof, provide the evidence to the police, cooperate with the investigation and tell everyone how and which MLA was being lured. Is this the same kind of allegation that you had levelled against late Arun Jaitley and Nitin Gadkari, only to apologise later? Earlier, they used to say they’d resign if a single finger was raised against them and an investigation was called for. Today, forget resigning, they are not even ready to cooperate with the investigation,” he said.

BJP MP Pravesh Verma said the AAP is in the habit of making such allegations to divert public attention from allegations or cases against them.

“Till now he (Kejriwal) has not come clean on which MLAs were called and approached with cash inducements to flip. Neither has he said who from the BJP met these AAP leaders. We met the Delhi Police commissioner and told him that if a CM levels such accusations against our party, we will not take it lying down. When the Delhi Police Crime Branch was at their doorsteps to serve notices for evidence, they ran away. If there was any truth to their claims, they would have volunteered and responded to these notices,” Verma told ANI.

Former cricketer and BJP MP Gautam Gambhir told ANI that those who are true and honest never run away from the law.

“They face every situation as opposed to running away and taking cover under excuses. It only goes to show their thinking and mindset,” Gambhir said.

Atishi, earlier, claimed that the BJP approached several AAP MLAs with bribes and threats in a bid to get them on their side. (ANI)