Kejriwal asks PM to apologise after IT Dept raids premises of Gahlot
New Delhi, Oct 10 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi should apologise to people for "constantly troubling" the Delhi government, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal Wednesday said following the Income Tax Department raids on premises linked to his minister Kailash Gahlot.
The Income Tax Department (ITD) conducted searches this morning on multiple premises linked to Gahlot, the Delhi Transport minister, in connection with an alleged tax evasion case, officials said.
"Friendship with Nirav Modi and Mallya and raid on us? Modiji you conducted raids on me Satyendar and Manish what happened to those (raids). Nothing was found. So before you go with another raid at least apologise to Delhi people for troubling their elected government," Kejriwal tweeted.
Officials said at least 16 locations in and around the national capital linked to Gahlot were being raided by a team of about 30 ITD sleuths.
The Aam Aadmi Party termed the raid as a "media event".
AAP spokesperson Saurabh Bhardwaj asked the central agencies including the CBI, the ED and the ITD to disclose if it found anything related to "corruption" during their raids on AAP leaders and ministers.
"Many such raids happened in the past but nothing substantial came out nor any charge sheet was filed," he said.
The searches are being conducted as part of a tax evasion probe against two construction firms linked to the minister and others, the officials said.
Gahlot is the minister for transport, law and revenue and is an Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA from the Najafgarh Assembly Constituency.
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Sujit Nair raises concerns over speculation of DMK-AIADMK understanding to block TVK
Chennai: Journalist and political commentator Sujit Nair has expressed concern over speculation that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam could explore a post-poll understanding to prevent Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam from forming the government in Tamil Nadu.
In a social media post, Sujit Nair said the election verdict in Tamil Nadu reflected a clear public demand for political change and argued that the mandate should be respected irrespective of political preferences.
Referring to reports and political discussions surrounding a possible understanding between the DMK and AIADMK, he said he hoped such developments remained only speculative conversations and did not turn into reality.
Nair stated that if such an alliance were to take shape, it would raise serious questions about ideological politics in the country. He said TVK had emerged through a democratic electoral process and that the legitimacy to govern in a parliamentary democracy comes from the people’s verdict.
According to him, attempts to prevent an electoral winner from forming the government through unexpected political arrangements may be constitutionally valid, but many people could view them as politically opportunistic.
He further said that such a move could particularly affect the political image of the DMK, which has historically projected itself around ideology, social justice and opposition politics. Nair said that in ideological terms, the DMK appeared closer to TVK than to the AIADMK, and joining hands with its long-time political rival only to remain in power could weaken its broader political narrative.
He added that the same questions would apply to the AIADMK as well, as the party had spent decades positioning itself against the DMK and such an arrangement could create discomfort among its cadre and supporters.
Drawing a comparison with Maharashtra politics in 2019, Nair said he had expressed similar views when the Shiv Sena formed an alliance with the Indian National Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party after the Assembly elections.
He said post-poll alliances between long-standing political rivals often create a public perception that ideology and electoral mandates become secondary when political power equations come into play.
Nair also said such developments increase public cynicism towards politics and reinforce the belief among voters that ideology is often sidelined after elections.
He maintained that the Tamil Nadu verdict was emphatic and said respecting both the spirit and substance of the mandate was important for the credibility of democratic politics.
