The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) staged a protest march to the BJP headquarters in Delhi on Saturday against the arrest of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in the alleged liquor policy scam.
Several AAP leaders, Atishi, Saurabh Bharadwaj, several MP, MLAs, and councillors took part in the march to the BJP office along with party workers. However, they were intercepted midway by the Delhi Police on their way to the BJP headquarters.
Addressing the rally, Delhi Minister Gopal Rai pointed out that the trial court had said that there was no evidence against Arvind Kejriwal while granting him bail. “After he got the bail, the ED went to the high court to get a stay on the bail order. A day before the hearing in the Supreme Court, the CBI arrested him. The sequel of incidents shows that they do not want the CM to come out of jail.”
Earlier, the DDU Marg area was closed for traffic between 11 am to 3 pm while security was beefed up around it. It was later opened for traffic.
The Delhi police, along with the Rapid Action Force (RAF), fortified the area with barricades. Water cannons and anti-riot force were also deployed by the police in the area.
AAP leader Saurabh Bhardwaj said, “The coordination between the ED and the CBI shows that the Central government wants to ensure that Arvind Kejriwal stays in jail. We will raise our voice against it from the entire nation,”
On Thursday, the AAP announced that a nationwide protest against the arrest of Kejriwal.
A decision in this regard was taken at a meeting at the party headquarters in the presence of AAP’s National General Secretary (Organization), Sandeep Pathak. The meeting was attended by top AAP leaders, including MPs, MLAs, and councillors.
During the meeting, the party alleged misuse of Central investigative agencies by the BJP government to target CM Kejriwal. Sandeep Pathak announced that AAP workers would hold a massive protest to oppose the BJP’s tactics and the arrest of their leader.