Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief Arvind Kejriwal appears to have taken a step back from his past brand of combative politics by settling the defamation case initiated by former Punjab minister and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader Bikram Singh Majithia. After Kejriwal tendered a written apology to Majithia for alleging the latter was involved in drug trade in Punjab, the SAD leader said he would withdraw his defamation suit against the chief minister. However, the move has upset the party's Punjab unit, with Bhagwant Mann resigning as the AAP's state chief. Kejriwal still has to contend with a defamation suit filed by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, among other cases. Kejriwal withdrew his allegations and an application regarding this was filed in a trial court in Amritsar, where the defamation case filed by Majithia against the AAP supremo on May 20, 2016, is being heard. "In the recent past, I made certain statements and allegations against you regarding your alleged involvement in drug trade. These statements became a political issue. Now, I've learnt that the allegations are unfounded," Kejriwal said, adding: "Hence, there should be no politics on such issues. I hereby withdraw all my statements and allegations made against you and apologise for the same." Responding to this development, Majithia said that he had accepted the apology. "I thank Kejriwal for showing greatness in seeking apology for his remarks made against me. I have told my lawyers that from our side, this case ends as Kejriwal has sought apology...," he said. However, not everybody in Kejriwal's party was in sync with the chief minister's decision. He drew flak from leaders in the AAP Punjab unit for his move. Meanwhile, Delhi AAP leaders hinted that a similar apology might be issued in a bid to end the defamation case filed by Arun Jaitley, too. Here are the top 10 developments around Arvind Kejriwal's apology to Bikram Singh Majithia: 1) Bhagwant Mann quits as AAP's Punjab unit chief: A day after Kejriwal's apology to Majithia drew flak from state unit leaders, Sangrur MP Bhagwant Mann today resigned as the AAP's Punjab chief. Mann announced his decision to resign on Twitter. "I m resigning as a president of AAP Punjab ... But my fight against drug mafia and all kind of corruption in Punjab will continue as an 'Aam Aadmi'of Punjab," he tweeted. 2) Kejriwal's apology a 'betrayal' of Punjab's people: Leader of the Opposition in the Punjab Assembly and senior AAP leader Sukhpal Singh Khaira said today that "all of us in Punjab are saddened" to learn how Kejriwal apologised to Majithia when the state government's STF has submitted in the High Court that there is strong clinching evidence against the latter, news agencies reported. He added that AAP MLAs would gather and take stock of the situation. All of us in Punjab are saddened to learn how Kejriwal ji has went to apologise to Majithia when state govt's STF has submitted in High Court that there is strong clinching evidence against him. AAP MLAs with gather & take stock of the situation: Sukhpal Singh Khaira, AAP #Punjab pic.twitter.com/CPqcahDTWj This is betrayal to people of Punjab, people will not bear with it. This is a non-issue, probably there is a back-door dealing behind it. Our MLAs will sit together & take a collective decision: Simarjit Singh Bains, Lok Insaf Party on if they will snap alliance with AAP #Punjab pic.twitter.com/d5ZlDfiohO
We’re appalled n stunned by the apology of @ArvindKejriwal tendered today,we don’t hesitate to admit that we haven’t been consulted on this meek surrender by a leader of his stature-khaira @ZeeNews @CNNnews18 @thetribunechd @HTPunjab @PTC_Network @JagbaniOnline @dailyajitnews In continuation of my tweet on Kejrewal apology we’ll meet the media at Chandigarh tomorrow,promise to continue our tirade on the burning issue of drugs destroying the youth of PB-khaira @ZeePunjab @News18Punjab @PTC_Network @thetribunechd @htTweets @JagbaniOnline @dailyajitnews I fail to understand the timing of Kejrewal’ apology when STF of PB has stated to the High Court today that there’s substantial evidence to proceed against Bikram Majitha on the issue of drugs-khaira @ZeeNews @News18India @thetribunechd
Responding to whether they will snap the alliance with AAP, Lok Insaf Party's Simarjit Singh Bains said that Kejriwal's apology was a "betrayal to people of Punjab". He added that people would "not bear with it". "This is a non-issue, probably there is a back-door dealing behind it. Our MLAs will sit together & take a collective decision," said Bains.
3) Arun Jaitley could be next on the list: There's another defamation case Kejriwal has to contend with -- the one filed by Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley. After the chief minister issued his apology to Majithia, the question on many people's mind was whether the AAP supremo would extend a similar apology to Jaitley, too. Now, it appears that he just might. Sources in the AAP have indicated that the party might resort to a similar tactic for dealing with the defamation cases filed by Jaitley against Kejriwal and other AAP leaders, agency reports said. In December 2015, Jaitley had filed a defamation case against Kejriwal and AAP leaders Kumar Vishwas, Ashutosh, Sanjay Singh, Raghav Chadha, and Deepak Bajpayee. Jaitley had claimed that Kejriwal and others made 'false and defamatory' statements in a case involving the Delhi & District Cricket Association (DDCA) and in the process harmed his reputation. The finance minister sought Rs 100 million (Rs 10 crore) in damages. 4) AAP's Punjab leaders cry 'meek surrender': The Aam Aadmi Party's Punjab unit leaders called the apology to Majithia a "meek surrender". Further, they described Kejriwal's step as a "letdown". AAP's Punjab leaders could hardly suppress their astonishment and anger over the move. Leader of the Opposition in the Punjab Assembly and senior AAP leader Sukhpal Singh Khaira took to Twitter and vented his disagreement with Kejriwal's actions. "We're appalled n stunned by the apology of @ArvindKejriwal tendered today, we don't hesitate to admit that we haven't been consulted on this meek surrender by a leader of his stature (sic)," Khaira tweeted.
Further, senior AAP leader Kanwar Sandhu also reacted sharply. "Arvind Kejriwal' apology to Bikram Majithia in the defamation case on drugs is a let down to the people, especially the youth of Punjab.
We in Punjab have not been taken into the loop. Our fight for Punjab continues," Sandhu tweeted.
5) Apology part of AAP's legal strategy: While the party's Punjab leaders spoke out against the move, AAP's Delhi unit said that Kejriwal was facing dozens of criminal and civil cases related to defamation, violation of Section 144, putting hoardings and posters up during election campaigns, and public protests, among other things, in Delhi and other parts of India like Varanasi, Amethi, Punjab, Assam, Maharashtra, and Goa. Saurabh Bharadwaj, the spokesperson of AAP's Delhi unit, explained the rationale behind the move. Bharadwaj said that AAP leaders were facing cases "foisted by our political rivals to de-motivate us and keep our leadership busy in these legal matters". He added that most of these cases required personal appearance in court and that the decision to "amicably sort out" all such legal cases was a strategy "devised by the legal team of the party". "The political cases in Delhi have been put on fast track, forcing MLAs and ministers to virtually attend cases on daily basis in courts at Delhi and other states," Bharadwaj said. ALSO READ: Majithia apology: Kumar Vishwas takes a poetic dig at Arvind Kejriwal 6) Majithia says defamation case is over: Majithia, for his part, has accepted Kejriwal's apology. "I thank Kejriwal for showing greatness in seeking apology for his remarks made against me. I have told my lawyers that from our side, this case ends as Kejriwal has sought apology. I have asked my counsels to withdraw the defamation case," the SAD leader said. "Person makes mistake and with the grace of God, if I have the ability to forgive and I will forgive," he added. "I had said from the beginning that either he will say sorry or he will go to jail. Sending someone to jail is not my intention," he asserted. "It is indeed a historical moment that a sitting chief minister has submitted a written apology in court withdrawing all statements he made against me," said Majithia.Arvind kejriwal' apology to Bikram majithia in the defamation case on drugs is a let down to the people, especially the youth of punjab. We in punjab have not been taken into the loop. Our fight for punjab continues.#punjabdrugs
— Kanwar Sandhu (@SandhuKanwar) March 15, 2018
On May 20, 2016, Bikram Singh Majithia filed a criminal defamation case against Kejriwal and two other AAP leaders for allegedly "tarnishing" his reputation. Besides Kejriwal, Sanjay Singh and Ashish Khaitan were also named in the case, which accused them of "tarnishing" the reputation of Majithia and his family members by levelling "false, baseless and malicious charges". The case was filed in the court of Civil Judge Gurpartap Singh in Amritsar under different sections of CrPC. Majithia had earlier filed a defamation case against these leaders in a Ludhiana court. ALSO READ: Kejriwal apologises to Majithia; AAP's Punjab leaders say 'meek surrender' While he accepted Kejriwal's apology, Majithia said that battling the allegations was a "very tortuous journey" for him. "The AAP, however, did not benefit as their candidate lost his security forfeited in my constituency," he added. Click here to read Majithia's side of the story regarding the allegations of being part of the drug trade made against him The controversy, which erupted after the allegations of being part of the drug trade were made against him, took a toll on his mother, Majithia said, adding that she could not understand that kind of politics. "My wife also went through a difficult phase, I thank the almighty that this chapter has ended and truth has prevailed," he said, adding, "If my two little kids were asked in school that your father does such things, you can imagine what could have been my position. What answer I could have given to them." AAP leader Ashish Khetan had apologised as well, he added. ALSO READ: Kejriwal apologises to Majithia over drugs charge; Truth prevails, says SAD leader 7) Kumar Vishwas attacks Kejriwal's move: Overt protests from Punjab's AAP unit aside, Kejriwal also faced implied criticism for his apology to Majithia. Senior AAP leader Kumar Vishwas launched a veiled attack on the AAP supremo over his apology. "Expert in dividing unity, expert at chopping off his own roots, why spit on the person who is himself ready to spit and take it back," Vishwas said in a tweet in Hindi. 8) Kejriwal apologises to Majithia: Kejriwal withdrew his allegations against Majithia and an application regarding the same was filed in a trial court in Amritsar. In the letter, Kejriwal said: "In the recent past, I made certain statements and allegations against you regarding your alleged involvement in the drug trade. These statements became a political issue. Now, I've learnt that the allegations are unfounded. Hence, there should be no politics on such issues," said the AAP supremo, adding, "Because of my allegations made against you at various political rallies, public meetings, TV programmes, print, electronic and social media, you filed a defamation case against us in the Amritsar court. I, hereby, withdraw all my statements and allegations made against you and apologise for the same."It is an historical moment for me personally and may be otherwise also where a sitting chief minister has apologised for the remarks he had made : Bikram Singh Majithia in Chandigarh pic.twitter.com/iddtwMg6II
— ANI (@ANI) March 15, 2018
9) Jaitley defamation case in a nutshell: A Rs 100-million (Rs 10-crore) defamation case was filed by Jaitley against Kejriwal and five other AAP leaders -- Raghav Chadha, Kumar Vishwas, Ashutosh, Sanjay Singh, and Deepak Bajpai -- for accusing the finance minister of corruption when he was the DDCA president. Jaitley denied all the allegations made by the AAP leaders in December 2015 and filed a civil defamation suit seeking Rs 100 million (Rs 10 crore) in damages from them. The BJP leader claims they made "false and defamatory" statements in the case involving DDCA, thereby harming his reputation. The AAP convenor is facing another Rs 100-million (Rs 10-crore) defamation suit by Jaitley after his former lawyer, senior advocate Ram Jethmalani, used "scandalous words" while cross-examining the BJP leader. ALSO READ: Jaitley defamation case: After Jethmalani, another lawyer abandons Kejriwal 10) Kejriwal's volte-face: However one might view Kejriwal's apology in the political context, in terms of stated positions, it is definitely a volte-face. In the past, the AAP supremo had said that he would repeat his allegations against Majithia a "thousand times". After Majithia filed his defamation case, Kejriwal had in July of 2016 said that the SAD leader had made the whole of Punjab addicted to drugs and was trying to frighten AAP by filling such cases. "Almost every house of Punjab is addicted to drugs. I have been told by Sanjay Singh and Ashish Khaitan that Majithia is involved in drug trafficking. Not only once, I will repeat this thousand times that Majithia is involved in drug trafficking," Kejriwal had said. He also accused Majithia of filing false cases against the people of Punjab to threaten them. "Badal (Parkash Singh) and Majithia are filing false cases against the common people of Punjab. If they can file a false case against me, I can imagine, what they would have done with the people of Punjab," he said. With agency inputs
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