At a time the main political parties are getting ready to face forthcoming Delhi Assembly elections, scheduled to be held in less then two months, AAP chief and former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal expressed fear that Delhi Chief Minister Atishi is also likely to be arrested in a “fake case”.
In a bold statement on X (formerly Twitter), Kejriwal said some individuals were concerned about the government’s recently announced welfare schemes, including the Mahila Samman Yojana and Sanjeevani Yojana.
“Some people have been rattled by the Mahila Samman Yojana and Sanjeevani Yojana. They have planned to arrest Atishi in the next few days in a fabricated case. Before that, raids will be conducted on senior AAP leaders,” Kejriwal tweeted.
It may be recalled that several AAP key leaders, including Chief Minister Kejriwal and Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia were earlier arrested by central probe agencies. BJP that failed to move headway in Delhi Assembly polls for the last 10 years, though it has been winning all seven Lok Sabha seats in the National Capital, is now making hectic moves to grab the Assembly from AAP.
Kejriwal also suggested that senior AAP leaders could face attacks as part of an alleged attempt to destabilise the party’s governance structure. To address these issues, he called a press conference at 12 noon to expose what he described as “attempts to hinder the party’s efforts to work for the public.”
The allegations come in an unprecedented move, senior officers in the Delhi government have released public notices and disowned the registration process started by Chief Minister Atishi and former chief minister Arvind Kejriwal for two schemes announced by the ruling AAP.
The move underlines the tenuous relationship between the bureaucracy and the elected Delhi government. After an amendment to the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD) Act, the services department comes under the control of the lieutenant governor.
On Monday, Kejriwal along with Atishi had kickstarted registration to give Rs 2,100 to non-tax paying women under the Mukhyamantri Mahila Samman Yojna, and provide free treatment to those over the age of 60 in government as well as private hospitals under the Sanjeevani Yojna.