The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday levelled fresh allegations of corruption against the Aam Aadmi Party, saying a former Delhi Jal Board chief engineer had 'transferred' Rs 2 crore of bribe money to his colleagues in the department and the ruling party in Delhi as election funds.
Those transferred include special secretary of health and family welfare Udit Prakash Rai, a 2007 batch IAS officer of AGMUT cadre.
Under the alliance arrangement for the mayoral elections, the AAP will fight for the mayor's seat while the Congress will contest the posts of senior deputy mayor and deputy mayor.
The Delhi minister also claimed that Kejriwal used to take 50 units of insulin daily before he was sent to jail.
A group of lawyers, including senior advocate Harish Salve and Bar Council of India chairperson Manan Kumar Mishra, has written to the Chief Justice of India, alleging that a "vested interest group" is trying to put pressure on the judiciary and defame courts "on the basis of frivolous logic and stale political agendas".
There are concerns within the Congress with respect to the articulation of the party's demand for the caste census, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently accusing the grand old party of attempting to divide Hindus through its push for the Other Backward Classes.
The Union Ministry of Home Affairs conveyed to Delhi's Lt Governor's office granting of sanction to prosecute Sisodia under Section 17 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 (powers to police for investigating a public servant).
The bench said the ED officers acting under the Section 19(1) of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) cannot ignore or not consider the material which exonerates the arrestee.
The CBI has already filed a charge sheet in the case against Prasad, Rabri Devi and 14 others under charges of criminal conspiracy and provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act, in which all the accused have been summoned on March 15, they said.
Reddy faced the biggest challenge of his political life in 2015 when he was allegedly caught on camera trying to bribe a nominated MLA to vote in favour of the TDP in a legislative council election.
The Delhi high court on Thursday refuses to entertain a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking the removal of Arvind Kejriwal as chief minister following his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate in the excise policy-linked money laundering case.
Kavitha attacked the BJP government at the Centre, alleging it of using the investigation agencies to target political parties and leaders who do not subscribe to its ideology.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was administered a 'low dose' of insulin after his blood sugar level spiked, officials of Tihar jail said on Tuesday, with the Aam Aadmi Party commenting that it was because of the blessings of Lord Hanuman.
Aam Aadmi Party sources said Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal wrote to Tihar jail superintendent on Monday claiming he has been asking for insulin daily amid spike in sugar levels.
AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh said that the decision that Kejriwal should continue to be the chief minister even after being jailed was that of the people of Delhi.
About 10 premises in the national capital are being covered as part of the raids.
The arrest of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal Thursday night could not have come at a worse time for the Aam Aadmi Party, which is already grappling with the absence of its top leadership from action.
The party is eyeing at expanding its footprint across the country and has tied up with the Congress to contest the Lok Sabha polls against the BJP in Delhi, Haryana and Gujarat.
The application was filed before special judge MK Nagpal, who posted the matter for hearing on Saturday, his advocate Rishikesh said.
Senior BJP leaders, including Union ministers Amit Shah and Rajnath Singh, asserted on Saturday that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will complete his full term if elected to power, refuting the Aam Aadmi Party's claim that Modi wants Shah to succeed him after turning 75 next year.
Atishi will handle education, PWD, power and tourism departments, while Bharadwaj will look after health, urban development, water and industries.
The ban is also estimated to have prevented 18 lakh men in the state from becoming overweight or obese, it said.
The prospect of the Delhi chief minister's wife, Sunita Kejriwal, who has so far maintained a distance from politics, assuming a new role is also being discussed by people.
The Enforcement Directorate on Wednesday alleged that bribe money generated from corruption in a Delhi Jal Board (DJB) contract was 'passed on' as election funds to the Aam Aadmi Party that rules the national capital.
Former Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia on Saturday reached his residence in New Delhi from Tihar Jail to meet his ailing wife after permission from a city court.
The court said the Delhi government was "interested in appropriation of power".
Kejriwal was scheduled to leave for the Vipassana course on Tuesday but could not do so as he was busy with the INDIA bloc meeting. He left at around 1.30 pm on Wednesday for the pre-scheduled meditation course, officials said.
A day before her scheduled appearance before the Enforcement Directorate in the Delhi excise policy case, Bharat Rashtra Samiti leader K Kavitha led a hunger strike here on Friday seeking the passage of the long-pending Women's Reservation Bill in this Budget session of Parliament.
In a post on X, Atishi questioned the "sealing" of the party office, saying it is against the "level playing field" promised by the Constitution.
With the arrest of Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia in the excise policy scam case, uncertainty looms over several critical Delhi government projects, including streetscaping and traffic decongestion plans, ahead of the G20 summit.
The GST Council on Saturday postponed a decision on cutting tax rate on life and health insurance premiums, officials said. The 55th meeting of the GST Council, chaired by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and comprising state counterparts, decided that some more technicalities needed to be ironed out and tasked the GoM for further deliberations.
The ED said its investigation also revealed that from 2019 to 2022, the sale of 'unaccounted illicit' liquor was almost 30-40 per cent of the total liquor sale in the state.
Yadav, who returned from the national capital on Thursday after a trip that lasted three days, asserted that there was "nothing new" in the summons, even as he alleged that the central agencies were acting as per the directions of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.
Terming the petition as "highly adventurous" and against the fundamental principles of the law, a bench of Acting Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Manmeet PS Arora said courts do not make policy decisions and that it is for Parliament to decide on such issues.
Justice Sanjiv Khanna, who has been part of several landmark Supreme Court judgements such as scrapping the electoral bonds scheme and upholding abrogation of Article 370, will be sworn in as the 51st Chief Justice of India on Monday.
The BJP may win more seats in the February 5 assembly election, but not enough to trump AAP, notes Ramesh Menon.
The development comes after the resignation of Manish Sisodia and Satyendar Jain, the key faces of the city government and were instrumental in steering the national capital through the COVID-19 crisis.
The Punjab chief minister said he was asked by Kejriwal to visit different places for campaigning for INDIA bloc candidates.
The high court also said that Kejriwal's absence cannot allow students to go through the first term without free text books, writing material and uniform in schools under the Municipal Corporation of Delhi.
She alleged that the ED has become a "political tool" of the Bharatiya Janata Party.
