AAP dares BJP to make public evidence against Sanjay Singh

New Delhi: The AAP on Thursday accused the Centre of trying to silence its MP Sanjay Singh by arresting him and challenged the BJP-led Union government to make public any evidence they have against him.

Singh was arrested on Wednesday by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with its money laundering probe linked to the 2021-22 Delhi Excise policy case.

Addressing a press conference here, senior AAP leader Atishi claimed that over 500 officers of the ED and CBI conducted raids at several places linked to the AAP leaders in the last 15 months but "haven't found a single evidence" against them.

"They raided Manish Sisodia's residence, offices and several other places but they couldn't find evidence of corruption of even a single penny. And now, Sanjay Singh has been targeted," she said.

"The ED officers raided every inch of Sanjay Singh's residence but couldn't find anything. They arrested him because he constantly raised issues of the Centre's corruption," she added.

Atishi said that if there is any evidence against Singh, the Centre "should make it public." "I want to challenge the BJP that if they have found any evidence against Sanjay Singh, they should make it public or they should quit politics. They can send their officers anywhere where Sanjay Singh has been and I can vouch they will not find anything against him," she claimed.

"We all know that whenever someone raises their voice against the government, there will be attempts to silence them. Since they couldn't silence him, they arrested him. The BJP should know that AAP is not going to get scared of their arrest threats," she said.

The arrest of the 51-year-old Singh, who became the second high profile leader of the Aam Aadmi Party to be nabbed in the case relating to the now scrapped Excise policy after former Deputy Chief Minister Sisodia, has sparked a political slugfest between the Arvind Kejriwal-led party and the Bharatiya Janata Party.

Another AAP leader, Gopal Rai, at the press conference said, "We went to Sanjay Singh's residence and his family told us that the ED didn't find anything against him, yet he was arrested. Until evening, the ED kept reiterating that it was just a part of the investigation process. But suddenly there were instructions from the higher authorities to arrest him." Rai too alleged that the BJP is "misusing" the central agencies like CBI and ED.

"The Centre is misusing ED and CBI by taking action against those who dare to speak up against rising inflation, poverty, and unemployment in the country. Even if the Central Government arrests all the leaders of the AAP, we won't bow down. We've been raising our voice for the country, its constitution and democracy and will continue to do so," he said.

Delhi minister Satyendar Jain was arrested by the ED on May 30, 2022 in a separate money laundering case.

Rai, the environment minister in the Delhi government, alleged that the central agency arrested Singh without any evidence against him.

AAP leader and MLA Dilip Pandey called the ED and CBI "campaigners" roped in by the BJP ahead of the general election.

"The whole country is watching, the BJP has launched its two-star campaigners, ED and CBI for 2024 Lok Sabha elections. While the AAP is raising its voice against the despotic rule of the Central Government, 40 raids have been conducted on opposition leaders by the ED at different locations across the country," Pandey said.

"In the last 4 days, media and journalists have been attacked, who refused to collude with the Central Government. A TMC MP was brutally dragged from a Union Minister's office and the next day, Sanjay Singh was arrested. This is an undeclared state of emergency," he alleged, referring to MP Mahua Moitra, who was carried off by female police constables from Krishi Bhavan after she was denied a meet by a BJP minister.

AAP leader Saurabh Bharadwaj alleged that more opposition leaders will be "targeted and arrested" in the future.

"BJP can understand that they will be defeated in the upcoming elections and hence, they are getting opposition leaders arrested. Many other opposition leaders will be arrested in future also," Bharadwaj alleged.