BJP has 'instructed' CBI to arrest me, will honestly answer questions posed by agency: CM Kejriwal
New Delhi (PTI): Ahead of his appearance before the CBI, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Sunday alleged that the BJP might have ordered the probe agency to arrest him and said they are "very powerful and can send anyone to jail".
In a five-minute video message on Twitter, Kejriwal said he would truthfully and honestly answer questions posed by the CBI in the excise case as he has nothing to hide.
"I have been summoned by CBI today and I will give all the answers with honesty. These people are very powerful. They can send anyone to jail, it does not matter if that person has committed any crime or not," the AAP leader said.
"Since yesterday, all of their leaders are screaming at top of their voices that Kejriwal will be arrested and I think BJP has instructed CBI also that Kejriwal should be arrested. If BJP has given an order, then who is CBI? CBI is going to arrest me," he said.
He also asserted that he can sacrifice his life for the country
"I love the country and Bharat Mata, can sacrifice my life for the country," he added.
Kejriwal is set to appear before the CBI on Sunday in connection with the excise policy case and will be accompanied to the agency's office by his Punjab counterpart Bhagwant Mann and cabinet colleagues.
He is being summoned as a witness and is not an accused in the excise policy case in which his former deputy Manish Sisodia was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on February 26. Sisodia was last month arrested by the ED.
It is alleged that the Delhi government's excise policy for 2021-22 to grant licences to liquor traders favoured certain dealers who had allegedly paid bribes for it, a charge strongly refuted by the AAP. The policy was later scrapped.
Officials said the CBI may also quiz Kejriwal on the statements of other accused where they have indicated the manner in which policy was allegedly influenced to favour some liquor businessmen and the 'South liquor lobby'.
In addition, the agency may also seek his role in the formulation of the excise policy and his knowledge about alleged influence being cast by the traders and 'South lobby' members, the officials said.
Kejriwal may also be asked if he was involved in the formulation of the policy before it was given approval, they said.
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Dalit outfits call state-wide hartal over dental student’s death
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): Various Dalit organisations on Monday announced a state-wide hartal seeking justice in the death of Kannur Dental College student Nithin Raj.
The hartal will be observed on Tuesday from 6 am to 6 pm.
As many as 52 Dalit organisations, including Justice for Nithin Raj Action Council, have announced the strike.
Organisations requesting cooperation for the strike said that no vehicles will be forcibly stopped and that all essential services are exempted.
Raj, a first-year BDS student at a private dental college in Anjarakkandy in Kannur district, was found critically injured after falling from a building on April 10 and later succumbed to his injuries.
Police have registered a case against two faculty members on charges of abetment of suicide and under provisions of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, following allegations by the student’s family that he was subjected to caste- and complexion-based harassment.
Kerala Pinnokka Samudaya Munnani (KPSM), one of the organisations supporting the hartal, alleged in a statement that police had shown apathy in the investigation and were attempting to protect the accused in the case.
KPSM state president K V Padmanabhan and general secretary S Anwar alleged that the probe into Raj’s death was being deliberately misdirected and delayed.
While the family has firmly alleged that caste discrimination and mental harassment by faculty members led to the student’s death, police were attempting to divert the investigation towards loan app borrowings, they claimed.
The organisation alleged that this was a planned move to shield the real accused.
KPSM further alleged that by deliberately delaying the arrest of the accused teachers, police enabled them to secure anticipatory bail.
They said there was no confidence in the present police investigation and demanded that the case be handed over to an independent agency at the earliest.
