The Enforcement Directorate on Thursday evening arrested Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in the liquor policy case, hours after the Delhi High Court rejected his plea seeking protection from 'coercive action' by the agency, which has served repeated summons to him.
The AAP chief was arrested after over two hours of questioning by an ED team, which included a Joint Director, at his residence.
Earlier in the day, the Delhi High Court refused to grant Kejriwal any interim relief.
Kejriwal is the biggest name to be arrested in the alleged scam, after BRS lawmaker K. Kavitha, former Delhi Deputy CM Manish Sisodia, and AAP RS member Sanjay Singh, among others.
Kejriwal will run govt from prison, says Delhi Assembly Speaker
Delhi Assembly Speaker Ram Niwas Goel said on Thursday that as decided earlier, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal will run the government and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) from prison in case of his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
Incidentally, soon after the Speaker made the remarks, the ED arrested Kejriwal from his residence after a two-hour grilling in connection with the alleged excise policy scam.
“Everyone is aware that Manish Sisodia was arrested without any evidence against him. Additionally, hundreds of people have been detained by the ED so far. The aim is to silence Arvind Kejriwal before the elections,” said Goel.
Meanwhile, scores of AAP workers and leaders, including MLAs Atishi and Saurabh Bhardwaj, were seen protesting near Kejriwal's residence on Thursday evening, as the ED team questioned the Chief Minister over his alleged involvement in the excise policy case.
AAP MLA Imran Hussain said there appears to be a deliberate plot to hinder the progress of AAP and Arvind Kejriwal.
“The people of Delhi have a strong affection for Arvind Kejriwal and they will react strongly against the agency action and the BJP,” Hussain said.
AAP spokesperson Priyanka Kakkar said that the BJP's 'actions' reflect desperation, as it is unable to compete with Kejriwal.
"They aim to prevent Arvind Kejriwal from participating in the Lok Sabha elections," Kakkar said.
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