High drama was witnessed outside Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s residence on Tuesday after his deputy Manish Sisodia went there and accused the Delhi Police of putting the former under house arrest. Police denied Kejriwal was under any kind of restraint.
Sisodia along with hundreds of party workers assembled near the CM’s residence and urged police to allow them to meet the Chief Minister. However, the Delhi Police asked him to speak to the officer concerned.
An agitated Sisodia then asked from whom he needed permission. “A Deputy CM wants to meet the Chief Minister and we are not allowed to go there,” he told the Delhi Police personnel deployed at the spot.
The face-off at the residence of Kejriwal started after the Delhi Police on Tuesday denied AAP claims that Kejriwal has been put under house arrest.
DCP North Anto Alphonse tweeted a picture of the Chief Minister’s residence and said: “This claim of CM Delhi put in house arrest is incorrect. He exercises his right to free movement within the law of the land. A picture of the house entrance says it all.”
Earlier in the day, AAP tweeted: “Delhi Police has put Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal under house arrest after he visited farmers at Singhu border yesterday.”
Sisodia accused the Delhi Police of putting the AAP leader under house arrest as Kejriwal denied them the permission to convert nine stadiums in Delhi into temporary jails to lodged farmers in case they were arrested.
“The Chief Minister denied permission to convert stadiums into temporary jails for protesting farmers. Now, public is not being allowed to meet him. Does this mean he is under house arrest? Why are all these security personnel posted here?”
He further said that the Chief Minister wants to meet these people (AAP workers) but the police is not allowing them. “This clearly means that he is under house arrest,” he said.
During the day, hundreds of AAP leaders and supporters, including party MLAs, rallied at the ITO to demand that they be allowed to meet Kejriwal. As traffic flow was hampered in the area, police put up barricades to keep the protesters in check and diverted commuters on alternate routes.
–IANS
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