The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has issued a defamation notice to Delhi Minister Atishi following her statement alleging that she was given an ultimatum to ‘join BJP or face arrest’.
During a press conference on Tuesday, the senior AAP leader, Atishi, claimed that a close associate warned her to either join the BJP or anticipate arrest by the Enforcement Directorate within a month. She also voiced concerns that herself and three other AAP leaders – Delhi Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj, MLA Durgesh Pathak, and Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha – could be subject to arrest. Atishi further disclosed being informed about potential ED raids at her and her relatives’ residences in the near future.
In response, Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva announced during a press conference that a defamation notice has been dispatched to Atishi, demanding a public apology for her allegations. He emphasized the lack of evidence provided by Atishi regarding the identity of the individual who approached her, as well as the timing and manner of the approach. Sachdeva attributed these allegations to the AAP’s internal crisis in Delhi, asserting their baselessness and expressing determination not to let Atishi evade accountability.
Atishi’s claims surfaced a day after the ED stated that Arvind Kejriwal had informed them of Vijay Nair, a central figure in the alleged liquor scandal, reporting to both Atishi and Saurabh.
Meanwhile, on April 2, the Supreme Court granted bail to AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh in the Delhi liquor policy case. The Court criticized the investigating agency, highlighting the absence of recovered money from Singh’s possession and suggesting that the allegation of him receiving a ₹2 crore bribe be examined during the trial.
