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Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar said on Friday that Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's arrest in the excise policy case is the "consequence of trying to run away from the investigation."
The Enforcement Directorate arrested Kejriwal in connection with the Delhi excise policy case on Thursday night, in which two senior AAP leaders are already in judicial custody. "The consequence of trying to run away from the investigation is an arrest that is the natural consequence of trying to hide and run from the investigation," Chandrasekhar said. The Union Minister also termed the opposition's reaction to the Delhi Chief Minister's arrest as "absolutely mystifying". "The opposition reactions to the arrest of Arvind Kejriwal are absolutely mystifying and extremely ironic because a person who has been given notice by the Directorate of Enforcement, a law enforcement agency, four times and chooses to ignore it," he said. Notably, opposition parties, including the Congress, have condemned the arrest of the Delhi CM. The minister said that the investigation is a "huge fall for a person like Arvind Kejriwal, who talked about the rule of law during the agitation with Anna Hazare." Arvind Kejriwal had joined the Anna movement in 2011 against the then Congress government's alleged corruption. Kejriwal rode on to fame, floated his political party in 2012, and contested for the chief minister's office. Furthermore, Chandrasekhar stressed the importance of every individual, regardless of political stature, being subject to the law. "Arvind Kejriwal should understand, as should the Congress, and the INDI alliance partners, that the law and the consequences of violating the law don't stop just because you are a politician or a political leader. Every Indian today is subject to the same laws; if you are involved in corruption, there is nothing that should prevent the law from coming to your doorstep and asking you all the relevant questions, even if you are Arvind Kejriwal or a big politician in the INDI alliance," he said. "So, this is all a big national political drama that has been created with INDI alliance partners, many of whom are enmeshed in corruption. When Arvind Kejriwal, the so-called poster boy in the fight against corruption many years ago, is now firmly named in a corruption scam involving alcohol licenses in Delhi, he should be cooperating with law enforcement instead of trying to run away from the investigation," Chandrasekhar said. Earlier social activist Anna Hazare on Friday said that the arrest of the AAP chief was because of his own "deeds." (ANI)
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