AAP holds ’emergency meeting’ of office-bearers after senior leaders ‘detained’

The AAP on Sunday held an “emergency meeting” of its office-bearers to decide the party’s next course of action after several top leaders were “detained” while protesting against the CBI summoning Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in the excise policy case.

AAP’s Delhi unit convenor Gopal Rai chaired the meeting, which included Mayor Shelly Oberoi, Deputy Mayor Aaley Mohammad Iqbal, the party’s national secretary Pankaj Gupta and leader Jasmine Shah.

Several senior AAP leaders were “detained” by the Delhi Police while they were staging a sit-in protest against Kejriwal’s summoning in connection with the excise policy case.

The detainees included Rajya Sabha MPs Sanjay Singh and Raghav Chadha, Delhi ministers Saurabh Bharadwaj, Atishi and Kailash Gahlot, AAP spokesperson Adil Ahmad Khan, its general secretary Pankaj Gupta and some ministers in the Punjab government.

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, who also joined the sit-in on Archbishop Road, had left the spot before the AAP leaders’ detention.

The CBI summoned Kejriwal to its office to answer questions of the investigation team as a witness in the excise policy case, according to a notice issued by the agency.

Manish Sisodia, Kejriwal’s former deputy in the Delhi government, was arrested last month in the case.

The AAP has called the case a conspiracy against its leaders.

The allegations relate to the Delhi government’s excise policy for 2021-22. The CBI is probing into allegations of bribes paid by liquor traders to get licences.

The AAP has strongly refuted these charges but its government later scrapped the policy.

(With PTI inputs)