ED issues 8th summons to Kejriwal, asks to join excise policy probe on March 4

The Enforcement Directorate ED has issued an eighth summons to Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal in a money laundering probe related to irregularities in the Delhi Excise Policy 202122 case asking him to join the investigation on March 4The fresh summons to the Delhi Chief Minister followed the seventh summons which he had skipped on February 26Kejriwal has so far skipped seven previous summons issued by the ED on February 26 February 19 February 2 January 18 January 3 November 2 and on December 22 calling them illegal and politically motivatedThe ED wants to record Kejriwals statement in the case on issues like formulation of policy meetings held before it was finalised and allegations of briberyWhile skipping the seventh summons issued by the ED AAP in a statement termed it illegal saying that the ED should stop sending summonses and wait for the courts decision as the probe agency has already approached the court on the matterA day after Kejriwal skipped the fifth summons issued by the Enforcement Directorate the agency on February 3 approached a Delhi court against him for noncompliance with the summonsThe case against the AAP supremo is based on a First Information Report FIR alleging multiple irregularities in the formation and implementation of the Delhi excise policy 202122 by the Central Bureau of Investigation The policy was withdrawn after allegations of corruptionIn its sixth chargesheet filed in the case on December 2 2023 naming AAP leader Sanjay Singh and his aide Sarvesh Mishra the ED has claimed that the AAP used kickbacks worth Rs 45 crore generated via the policy for part of its assembly elections campaign in Goa in 2022On Kejriwals role one of the six charge sheets filed in January 2023 states that Kejriwal told businessman Sameer Mahendru that former AAP communications incharge Vijay Nair is his boy and that he should trust himThe excise policy was aimed to revitalise the citys flagging liquor business and replace a salesvolumebased regime with a license fee for traders It promised swankier stores and a better buying experience The policy introduced discounts and offers on the purchase of liquor for the first time in DelhiLieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxenas move to order a probe into alleged irregularities in the regime prompted the scrapping of the policy The AAP has accused Saxenas predecessor Anil Baijal of sabotaging the move with a few lastminute changes that resulted in lowerthanexpected revenuesTwo senior AAP leaders Manish Sisodia and Sanjay Singh are already under judicial custody in the case Sisodia who was the then Delhi Deputy Chief Minister was arrested by the CBI on February 26 following several rounds of questioning and on October 5 the ED arrested Singh who is a Rajya Sabha memberThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever