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Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday conducted raids at multiple premises linked to Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Rajya Sabha MP and its Deputy Leader of the Upper House, Ashok Kumar Mittal, in connection with an alleged violation of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), officials said.
AAP leaders, including Former Delhi Chief Minister and AAP national convenor, Arvind Kejriwal, slammed the Centre and criticised the ED raids. Kejriwal called for a befitting reply to the BJP in the 2027 Punjab Legislative Assembly elections. "Modi ji has started preparations for the elections in Punjab. But the people of Punjab will not tolerate this. They will give a befitting reply to the BJP," AAP convenor wrote on X. Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann posted on X, "BJP begins preparations for Punjab elections. ED raids at the home and university of AAP Rajya Sabha MP Ashok Mittal. Typical Modi style. We are not the leaves that will fall after breaking from the branch; tell the storms to stay within their limits." Manish Sisodia called the central agencies' raids a pattern before state elections, calling ED and the CBI, "the first contingent" of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He wrote, "Whenever elections are held in any state, Modi ji sends the first contingent of his election army-- ED and CBI. The drama of conducting raids unfolds. Then the force that incites riots goes. After that, there are visits by Amit Shah and Modi ji." "But Modi ji, please keep this in mind-- this is Punjab. Yahan Babasaheb and Bhagat Singh se nafrat karne walo ki dal nahi galane wali (Those who hate Babasaheb and Bhagat Singh, won't succeed here)," Sisodia's post read. AAP MP Sanjay Singh told ANI that he will raise the issue in the three-day special sitting of Parliament, which begins on April 16. Singh said, "Wherever elections are held, the BJP uses its own agencies. PM Modi's popularity has waned across the country. Now his only option is to misuse the ED, CBI, and the Election Commission to win elections. This formula of the BJP will not work in Punjab. The sudden and massive attack on Ashok Mittal is an example of the same game. Everyone is standing together strongly, and I will try to raise this issue in the session too. These people will play many such games before the Punjab elections." Ashok Kumar Mittal was recently appointed as the new Deputy Leader of AAP in the Upper House, replacing Raghav Chadha. A Rajya Sabha MP from Punjab, Mittal was elected to the House in April 2022 and, since then, has been a part of several parliamentary committees, including the Committee on Defence, the Committee on Finance and in February 2026, he was made a member of the India- USA Parliamentary Friendship Group. He was also a part of an all-party delegation, led by Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) MP Kanimozhi, which visited Russia, Latvia, Slovenia, Greece, and Spain after the Pahalgam terror attack last year. (ANI)
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