Was approached with offer of Rs 25 crore to join BJP: AAP MLA Rituraj Jha
New Delhi: AAP MLA Rituraj Jha on Monday alleged in the Delhi Assembly that he was approached by the BJP to join them with an offer of Rs 25 crore to break away from the party and bring 10 MLAs along with him.
Speaking in the Delhi Assembly, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of "wanting to crush the Delhi government".
"Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal is the only leader who has defeated Prime Minister Narendra Modi four times in Delhi -- 2013, 2015, 2020 Assembly elections and 2022 MCD polls. They have started a cheap trick once again," he said.
Jha said that he was approached with an offer to join the BJP on Sunday.
"Yesterday, I went to Bawana's Dariyapur to attend a wedding after the INDIA maharally. There were some people who were trying to approach me over phone for the last three to four days," Jha said.
"When I reached there at 9.15 pm, three-four people took me to one side and said 'see if you will not agree, you will not get anything. President's rule will be imposed. You bring 10 MLAs and we will give Rs 25 crore to each one of you. You will be made a minister in the BJP government'," he added.
Asserting the AAP MLAs will not leave the party, Jha escalating his attack on the BJP said that Operation Lotus has begun again.
BJP MLA Vijender Gupta asked Jha whether he filed a police complaint after receiving a call for joining the saffron party.
"The AAP MLAs have alleged a dozen times before that money was offered to them. Saying anything using sanctity of the House is not done. How long will you speak lies?" he said.
AAP legislator Somnath Bharti, while speaking in the House, said it was duty of the Election Commission "to ensure free and fair elections but it kept mum even as the convener of a national party was sent to jail ahead of the Lok Sabha polls".
"A sitting chief minister was arrested on the statement of such a person who in his previous six statements said nothing against him. I will tonsure my head and go door to door telling people how (Prime Minister Narendra) Modi and the BJP have murdered democracy if President's rule is imposed in Delhi," he said.
He charged that the BJP wanted Kejriwal to resign.
"But Kejriwal had already asked entire Delhi what should he do if the BJP got him arrested. Entire Delhi is saying that Kejriwal should not resign from the chief minister's post," Bharti said.
"If anyone can save democracy in the country, it is only Kejriwal. The BJP is ruining the country and destroying the democracy and the Constitution," he charged.
The AAP national convener, who was arrested on March 21 and subsequently remanded to the ED custody by a Delhi court, faces allegations of direct involvement in a conspiracy related to the formulation of the excise policy favouring specific individuals.
Kejriwal has been sent to judicial custody by the trial court till April 15.
BIG EXPOSE BY AAP MLA - OPERATION LOTUS OF BJP EXPOSED IN DELHI
— AAP Ka Mehta 🇮🇳 (@DaaruBaazMehta) April 1, 2024
AAP MLA @MLARitura Exposed BJP in Delhi Assembly on how they are trying to break AAP in DElhi.
BJP offered 25 crores to Join BJP or face ED/CBI
BJP said that they will impose President's Rule if we dont agree.… pic.twitter.com/Nty26zSSdt
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Putin meets Iran's FM Araghchi, says Russia ready to do its best to help bring peace to West Asia
Moscow (PTI): Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Monday met Russian President Vladimir Putin, who hailed the Iranian people for fighting bravely and heroically for their sovereignty and said Moscow is ready to do its best to help bring peace to West Asia as soon as possible.
Araghchi, who held talks with Omani and Pakistani leadership before arriving in Russia, met Putin in St. Petersburg and thanked him for supporting Iran, state-owned TASS news agency reported.
"Russia is ready to do everything in its power to ensure that peace in the Middle East is achieved as soon as possible," Putin said during his meeting with Araghchi, which was also attended by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
Revealing that he received a message from Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei last week, Putin asked Araghchi to convey his "gratitude for this message and best wishes for his health and well-being."
He praised the Iranian people for fighting "bravely and heroically" for their sovereignty, Iran's state-run PRESS TV reported.
"We really hope that, based on the courage and desire for independence, the Iranian people, under the guidance of the new leader, will weather this difficult period of trials and peace will come,” Putin said.
He also stressed that Russia “intends to maintain” its strategic relations with Iran.
Araghchi said that the world witnessed Iran’s strength in countering the US during the recent war, and that the Islamic Republic is a "stable and powerful establishment."
"With their courage, the Iranian people succeeded in resisting the US aggression and will be able to endure it,” he said.
He said that it became clear that Iran has “great friends and allies” like Russia, and conveyed “warmest greetings” from Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei and President Masoud Pezeshkian to the Russian leader.
Araghchi said relations between Moscow and Tehran represent a “strategic partnership at the highest level” and will continue to develop "regardless of circumstances."
"We are grateful to you for the solid and strong positions in support of the Islamic Republic of Iran," he said.
Foreign Minister Lavrov said that the talks between President Putin and the Iranian Foreign Minister were "useful and constructive."
Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov later said that Russia is "ready to provide any good offices, any mediation services that are acceptable to the parties."
"We will be ready to do everything so that ultimately peace ensues, guaranteed peace, and that there is no return to hostilities," Peskov was quoted as saying by TASS.
He was asked how Moscow can assist in future negotiations on the Iranian settlement.
Araghchi arrived in Russia after his whirlwind trip to Islamabad, which, according to him, was “very productive” and involved “good consultations" with Pakistan's Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir, amid uncertainty over the second round of peace talks to resolve the war in West Asia.
"We held good consultations with our friends in Pakistan. The trip was successful. We assessed the outcome of our recent (meetings) and discussed in what direction and under what conditions talks can move on,” Araghchi said in a video posted on his Telegram channel upon his arrival in St Petersburg.
Referring to the second round of talks between the US and Iran to resolve the conflict in West Asia, Araghchi said: "Developments have taken place in the negotiations."
"Despite some progress in earlier rounds, the talks failed to reach their objectives due to the Americans' approach, the excessive demands they made, and the wrong approaches they adopted. Therefore, it was necessary to consult with our friends in Pakistan to review the latest situation,” Iran's official news agency IRNA quoted him as saying.
He said that the trip to Pakistan was a good opportunity to review developments related to the US-Israeli war against Iran, expressing confidence that “these consultations and coordination between the two countries will be highly significant.”
Araghchi arrived at St. Petersburg's Pulkovo Airport early Monday, where he was welcomed by Russian officials and Iran’s ambassador to Russia, Kazem Jalali, the report said.
The first round of peace talks between Iran and the US, held on April 11 and 12, failed to bring the desired result for the parties to the conflict.
The Iranian minister arrived in Islamabad for the second time on Sunday after a short visit to Oman, where he held talks with Sultan Haitham bin Tariq al-Said on security in the Strait of Hormuz and diplomatic efforts to end the Iran-US conflict.
After Araghchi left Pakistan for Oman on Saturday, President Donald Trump announced that US negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner would no longer be going to Islamabad for talks with Iran, contending that Washington held all the cards on the matter.
Trump on Sunday reiterated that the US and Iranian officials can talk by phone for a peace solution to the conflict.
On Tuesday, Trump extended the two-week ceasefire with Iran indefinitely to give Tehran more time to prepare a unified proposal to end the war, just hours before the truce was set to expire.
The war began when the US and Israel jointly attacked Iran on February 28, killing Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several top commanders. The retaliation by the Islamic Republic extended the war to the entire Gulf region.
