Arvind Kejriwal’s resignation: From excise policy issue to Swati Maliwal episode – top 5 controversies of Delhi CM’s third term | Mint

Arvind Kejriwal submitted his resignation as Delhi Chief Minister to Lieutenant Governor (LG) VK Saxena on September 17. Atishi, a close confidante of the outgoing chief minister, has also staked claim to form the next government in the national capital.

Kejriwal, the chief of the Aam Aadmi Party, was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Delhi for the third time on February 16, 2020, after the party won 62 out of 70 seats in the Delhi Assembly election.

Kejriwal’s third term as Chief Minister was surrounded by several controversies, the biggest of which was the allegations of money laundering in the Delhi Excise Policy case.

Here are the 5 major controversies that affected Brand AAP in Kejriwal’s third term:

1- Delhi Excise Policy Case-2021-22

AAP and its leaders have been accused of money laundering in the Delhi Excise Policy case. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) – two of the country’s premier investigating agencies – have alleged irregularities during the amendment of the Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22, giving undue benefits to license holders.

The ED chargesheet states that this policy was actually devised by the top leaders of the Aam Aadmi Party to raise and funnel illegal money for themselves.

These allegations eventually led to the arrest of the AAP’s top leadership – Arvind Kejriwal, Manish Sisodia and Sanjay Singh, among others. The Supreme Court has since released all of them on bail. The policy, implemented in November 2021, was scrapped in September 2022 amid allegations of corruption.

2- Swati Maliwal controversy- May 2024

AAP Rajya Sabha member and former Delhi Commission for Women chief Swati Maliwal alleged that Arvind Kejriwal’s close aide Bibhav Kumar assaulted her at the chief minister’s residence on May 13, kicking off a political storm in the national capital.

The AAP had earlier said that an aide of Kejriwal had “misbehaved” with Maliwal and action would be taken against him, but later alleged that she was part of the BJP’s conspiracy against Kejriwal. Kumar was arrested and later released on bail earlier this month.

3- CAA will take away jobs- March 2034

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had stirred a political controversy in March this year when he claimed that if one crore people came to India after the implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act, there would be “riots all around”. He had termed the implementation of the law as the BJP’s “dirty vote bank politics” ahead of the Lok Sabha elections and said that the implementation of the CAA would take away jobs for India’s youth.

The BJP hit back strongly, accusing Kejriwal, who is also the national convener of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), of being “anti-Hindu, anti-Sikh and anti-Buddhist”.

Kejriwal’s remarks came days after the government notified the implementation of the CAA, weeks ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. The controversial law paves the way for citizenship for non-Muslim migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan who entered India before December 31, 2014.

The CAA faced multiple delays and constant criticism from opposition parties. Since its passage in December 2019, more than 100 people have lost their lives in protests and subsequent police action.

4- The Restoration of ‘Sheesh Mahal’ at a cost of Rs 45 crore – 2023

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) said in April 2023 that Protesting against the expenditure of Rs 45 crore on ‘beautification’ of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s government residence in the Civil Lines area of ​​the city, they demanded his resignation on ‘moral’ grounds.

An investigation is underway into the renovation of the Chief Minister’s residence at 6 Flagstaff Road. The allegations are being investigated. At least three engineers have been suspended in the case so far.

5-Tablighi Jamaat Controversy – 2020

In November 2020, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) president Asaduddin Owaisi had hit out at Kejriwal, calling him ‘Modi of 2013’, accusing him of defaming the Muslim community during the COVID-19 pandemic and doing nothing to stop the February 2020 Northeast Delhi riots.

Kejriwal called the organisers of the event held at Nizamuddin Markaz in Delhi on March 12 and 13, 2020 ‘irresponsible’ for allowing people from India and abroad to gather there.

The Tablighi Jamaat event held at the venue was blamed for thousands of coronavirus cases across the country.

Kejriwal said, “This disease has gripped the entire world. It (holding a gathering) was a very irresponsible thing to do at such a time. Navratri is going on and usually there are a lot of people in temples, but now there is no one. Gurudwaras are closed and people are not coming to mosques to pray; they are praying at home. Mecca is empty and Vatican City is empty. It was wrong to hold such a big gathering at such a time.”