Exclusive/ Union Minister Anurag Thakur Lambasts AAP Over Its 'Double Standards'

New Delhi: Union Minister for Information & Broadcasting Anurag Thakur on Wednesday lambasted the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) over its “double standards” as he evoked Punjab Chief minister and AAP leader Bhagwant Mann's earlier remarks wherein the AAP leader had called the Congress “a party of the corrupt”, while asserting that Arvind Kejriwal-led party wouldn't form an alliance with them [the Congress], and how – in a U-turn of sorts –  the AAP dispensation ultimately ended up doing the exact opposite of it in Delhi by forging an “alliance of convenience” with the same Congress Party.

“It is an alliance of the corrupt people and now the question really is whether they have already accepted defeat before the elections?”, Thakur quipped, while speaking exclusively with Republic TV.

Meanwhile, reports emerged that Mann has written to the Tihar jail administration, seeking permission to meet with Kejriwal. The letter was sent by the Chief Minister's Office (CMO), news agency PTI reported, citing the party sources.

“If they win, it is because of Rahul Gandhi, and if they lose the poll battle, then that is because of faulty EVMs”, Thakur said in an apparent satire aimed at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.

Stressing that they [the Opposition bloc] have stooped down to unimaginable levels in a bid to win elections, the BJP leader further said, “They formed an alliance with a party which is not good for the country... They meet with leaders who talk against the country”.

Citing the AAP's slogan: ‘India Against Corruption’, Thakur underlined how Kejriwal, who had once rallied against the Congress over its corrupt practices, is himself behind the bars today in connection with a Delhi Excise policy-linked money laundering case. “Today the entire party [AAP] itself is corrupt…Kejriwal had once demanded that Sonia Gandhi be put behind bars, and now they [AAP chief along with his party leaders] – are often seen shaking hands with the same party [Congress] that reeks of Parivaarvaad", the BJP leader further said while delivering stinging remarks against the “corrupt and dynasts” who'd taken to the podium during several rallies organised by the opposition-led INDI bloc in the run up to the biggest poll battle of the year – Lok Sabha Elections 2024.

Highlighting that the AAP's next plan is to launch Rabri Devi 2.0, the minister said, “INDI has made a joke out of democracy”. 

In a visibly-sharp dig at AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal-led government in Delhi, Thakur, who is also the Youth Affairs & Sports Minister in the Modi-government, said, “We have covered the journey of 'Swaraj' to 'Sharab' [from free water to free liquor now] under the AAP dispensation in Delhi, in no time”. 

Notably, Kejriwal was arrested by the ED on March 21 in the Delhi excise policy-linked money laundering case. The case pertains to alleged irregularities in the formulation and implementation of the Delhi government's excise policy 2021-22 that was later scrapped.

Stressing further that the people of Delhi are now able to see a clearer picture, the BJP leader said, “No chief has ever pleaded guilty”, adding, “According to them, if the ED arrests them, then the ED only is wrong”.

With the AAP leaders already lodged in jail for about a year-and-a-half, and now the sitting chief minister also put behind bars in alleged scam only point towards one thing: the allegations are serious, Thakur asserted. Kejriwal is in judicial custody till April 15.

Both the Congress and the AAP have, on several occasions, tried to build pressure on all the central agencies, including the Election Commission of India (ECI), he said, adding that there is no one left who hasn't been fooled by them.

Last month, the ED had informed the Delhi High Court that Kejriwal was the "kingpin" and the "key conspirator" of the "excise scam" and there were "reasons to believe" on the basis of material in its possession that he was guilty of the offence of money laundering.