BJP seeks Sisodia’s ouster from government

NEW DELHI: Delhi Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) staged a protest outside Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s residence at Civil Lines on Monday against the alleged irregularities in the ongoing controversy over the state government’s excise policy, demanding the sacking of deputy CM Manish Sisodia from the cabinet for his role in the policy. 

BJP workers and supporters led by the party’s state unit chief Adesh Gupta holding placards asking “Sisodia should be sacked” climbed up on the barricades put up before the CM’s house. Sisodia’s residence was raided by the CBI on August 19 in connection with the ongoing probe against the alleged irregularities in the now scrapped Delhi excise policy 2021-22. He is one of the 15 accused in the FIR filed by the CBI in the case. 

“Delhi has come to know that if anyone is the main culprit of this entire scam, it is Manish Sisodia and its kingpin is Kejriwal, so now giving him a place in the cabinet means promoting corruption. So he should be sacked from the cabinet at the earliest, “ said Gupta. 

He added that the BJP will go door-to-door across the city to tell about the alleged scam by the Delhi government. “We will tell every resident of Delhi how Kejriwal government is misusing taxpayers’ money only for their political gains,” said Gupta.  Gupta raised questions to the city government including that if this excise policy was helpful in increasing the revenue of Delhi, then why was it withdrawn ? 

“Who approved Kejriwal to waive off Rs 144 crore for liquor mafia without any cabinet meeting?” Gupta said.  While burning Sisodia’s effigy, party workers said that Kejriwal, who talked about opening schools, could not open even one but he did open liquor vends next to schools and has also tried to push the youth of Delhi towards alcoholism by reducing the drinking age. 

Leader of Opposition in the Delhi Assembly, Ramvir Singh Bidhuri said that liquor shops were opened in those areas where they should not have been opened under the new excise policy, by going against the law. “More than 300 liquor vends were opened illegally and huge corruption was carried out behind this. After all, how did the cabinet headed by Kejriwal give permission to open liquor contracts in those areas. The policy was aimed to directly benefit the liquor mafia,” said Bhiduri.