Kejriwal rubbishes Mishra’s allegations as ‘baseless’

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, May 21

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal today opened up in the backdrop of a barrage of allegations of “hawala links and money laundering” levelled by rebel party leader Kapil Mishra recently when he rubbished the charges as “baseless”.

This came on a day when Mishra fired a new charge at the Chief Minister alleging a businessman being probed in the Rs 400-crore high-security number plates scam sponsored the foreign trips of AAP leaders Sanjay Singh and Ashutosh something that was refuted by government spokesperson Nagendra Sharma.

Addressing party volunteers during a convention here, Kejriwal said the party is being targeted more than any other as it has emerged as a big challenger to its opponents.

“Over the last days, our movement was attacked many times. It gives a happy feeling as this shows we are the biggest threat to our political adversaries,” said Kejriwal.

The AAP chief said if there had been any truth in the allegations against him today he would have been in jail while calling them “rubbish and baseless”.

Even the Opposition parties are not buying the charges against him, pointed out Kejriwal while claiming that he is hurt due to betrayal by “own people”.

On the other side, former Cabinet aide Mishra upped the ante against Kejriwal and senior leaders asking if he knew about the alleged funding of a Russia trip of Singh and Ashutosh by a man embroiled in high-security number plates scam currently investigated by the Anti-Corruption Branch.

“Some of the companies that are being probed have a direct link with the person who funded their (Singh and Ashutosh) trip,” alleged Mishra addressing reporters.

However, the government spokesperson posted a denial in a series of tweets, saying the probe into the plates was ordered by Sarubh Bhardwaj in 49 days' govt in Feb 2014, but then Lt Governor Najeeb Jung “reversed” the decision.

The case is understood to have come to light during the AAP government’s 49-day stint in Delhi. It is said that the city government had awarded the contract to a firm for high-security number plates but it was later terminated due to a report by a fact-finding committee then set up by then Transport Minister Sourabh Bhardwaj.

Mishra apologies to former AAP leaders 

Suspended AAP leader Kapil Mishra today apologised to former party colleagues Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Bhushan, who were ousted from AAP in April 2015 for after they challenged Kejriwal’s leadership. They went on to launch a new political outfit Swaraj India last year.

In response, Yadav said it is apt to make public facts about the episode of the party meeting. The meeting in which Yadav and Bhushan were said to have been manhandled by Kejriwal’s associates, as also pointed out by another Swaraj India leader Anupam who asked Kapil to reveal the truth behind the conspiracy to expel the two leaders.

“Nothing personal, @KapilMishraAAP Apology due to all volunteers. Best to put all facts about that episode in public,” tweeted Yadav.

Mishra said he was following the directions of Kejriwal and was responsible for their eviction while adding that he will not leave the party and try to “cleanse” it. For which he asked India Against Corruption volunteers to come forward and help him make Delhi "corruption-free and Kejriwal-free" by a campaign "Let's clean AAP" campaign.