ED arrests AAP MLA Amanatullah Khan in Waqf Board appointment scam

New Delhi: The Aam Aadmi Party's (AAP) government in Delhi is facing mounting challenges. Manish Sisodia, the first Deputy Chief Minister, was detained in connection with an alleged scam in the Liquor Policy Case. The ED then arrested Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. There are also reports of another AAP MLA being arrested.

According to ED sources, Aam Aadmi Party MLA Amanatullah Khan was detained in connection with the Waqf Board appointment scam. Amanatullah Khan appeared before the ED on Thursday (April 18), per the Supreme Court's directives. He was interrogated for about 9.5 hours in the ED office, after which the agency officials arrested him.

Amanatullah Khan, an MLA from Okhla, won the 2020 election for the Aam Aadmi Party but has faced controversies and opposition from opposition parties in the Okhla Assembly. Amanatullah Khan has been accused of fraudulently hiring 32 people to serve as the Chairman of the Delhi Waqf Board. In addition, he has unlawfully rented out various properties of the Delhi Waqf Board. The AAP MLA has also been accused of exploiting Delhi Waqf Board funds. The then-CEO of the Delhi Waqf Board has made a statement condemning such unlawful recruiting. During the investigation, cash was found at the homes of Amanatullah's close acquaintances.

The ED issued six summons to MLA Amanatullah Khan. Despite getting the summons, Amanatullah Khan did not appear before the ED. An anticipatory bail plea was submitted on his behalf before the Supreme Court, but it was refused by the court, which stated that no exception can be granted based on your status as an MLA. The law is the same for everyone. Along with this, the court stated that it is improper to repeatedly ignore the ED summons. Following this, Khan appeared in front of the ED.

During the investigation, cash was discovered near the homes of Amanatullah's close acquaintances. Following the raid, a diary was also found at the house of Amanatullah's close relatives, in which there was mention of transactions worth crores of rupees made by Amanatullah within the country and abroad.

In this matter, Amanatullah was probed by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) in September 2022. Based on this, the ACB raided four locations. About Rs 24 lakh in cash was retrieved. Apart from that, two unauthorized and unlicensed firearms were discovered. Cartridges and ammunition were also recovered. Later, Amanatullah was arrested. He was later released on bail on December 28, 2022.