His pawns have resigned, when will Kejriwal: BJP

New Delhi: A day after two Delhi ministers facing corruption charges resigned, the BJP on Wednesday intensified its attack on Aam Aadmi Party leader and Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and asked when will he resign. Ministers Manish Sisodia and Satyendar Jain resigned from the Cabinet on Tuesday. Sisodia, who was handling 18 of the total 33 departments in the Delhi government, was arrested on Sunday evening by the CBI in the Delhi excise policy case, while Jain, currently lodged in Tihar jail, was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in May last year in connection with a money laundering case.

"His pawns have resigned. When will he resign," BJP spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia asked at a press conference and added that Kejriwal was the "kingpin" of the alleged corruption in framing of the Delhi excise policy, now withdrawn, in which his deputy Sisodia has been arrested by the CBI. Bhatia also targeted Kejriwal over Sisodia's resignation letter, saying that it is undated which raises a lot of questions.

"The resignation letter of Manish Sisodia raises very pertinent questions as it does not have a date. Is it because the kingpin of the excise policy scam Arvind Kejriwal has yet again played with the Constitution. The surfacing of this undated letter reveals a lot about their practices," he said. Kejriwal heads the Cabinet and council of ministers and "you are in a position to influence the ongoing investigation, in which your involvement is writ large", the BJP spokesperson said. Bhatia also demanded that Kailash Gahlot should also resign as minister as he was part of the group of ministers of the Delhi government that approved the liquor policy. PTI JTR KR

The Congress in Delhi on Wednesday staged a protest near the Aam Aadmi Party office here, demanding the resignation of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal following the arrest of his deputy Manish Sisodia by the CBI. Several Congress leaders and workers, led by their state unit president Anil Chaudhary, gathered near the AAP's DDU Marg office and raised slogans against Kejriwal and Sisodia. The party said a fair probe would not be possible as long as Arvind Kejriwal remains in power. "The entire Delhi government is fully immersed in corruption. As long as Kejriwal remains in power, there will not be an independent probe in the liquor scam, and therefore, he should also submit his resignation," Chaudhary said.