NEW DELHI: Amid reports of intelligence inputs warning of a potential threat against him, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday expressed his faith in divine protection.
Speaking to the media before filing his nomination for the Delhi assembly polls, Kejriwal said, “God will save me” (“Upar wala bachayega“).
According to reports, intelligence agencies have flagged the possibility of an attack on the AAP chief ahead of the elections.
In a separate development, the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has granted the Enforcement Directorate (ED) permission to prosecute Kejriwal and former Deputy CM Manish Sisodia under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). This pertains to allegations of money laundering in the now-scrapped Delhi liquor policy for 2021-22.
The sanction follows their release on bail in related cases. The Supreme Court had granted Kejriwal bail in September last year and Sisodia in August. The prosecution sanction is crucial as it addresses a delay in framing charges in the PMLA case, where a special court had earlier postponed proceedings due to the absence of specific authorization for prosecution.
Responding to the developments, BJP candidate Parvesh Verma criticised Kejriwal, alleging negligence during the COVID-19 pandemic. “While COVID was claiming lives worldwide, Kejriwal was formulating a liquor policy and building his ‘Sheesh Mahal’ (palatial residence). When people were pleading for medicines and basic necessities, he focused on constructing his house instead of helping Delhiites,” Verma said.
