'Possible that Kejriwal informed CBI about Sisodia', says BJP on Excise Policy scam

New Delhi, Aug 19: The BJP on Friday hit out at the AAP government following raids by CBI at the residence of Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and other places in Delhi in Excise Policy scam.

Talking to reporters, Senior party leader Dr Harsh Vardhan accused Arvind Kejriwal government of indulging in corrupt practices under the garb of excise policy. He said that the corrupt and dishonest Arvind Kejriwal government and Minister has no right to continue in government after the CBI carried out searches in Excise Policy scam. He also demanded that the corrupt Ministers of Delhi should step down.

Delhi BJP Unit Chief Adesh Gupta alleged that Sisodia colluded with liquor mafia leading to loss of huge revenue to exchequer.

Attacking the AAP, BJP MP Gautam Gambhir said, "When you have looted crores and crores of taxpayers' money and made a liquor policy sitting with the liquor mafia, your place is not outside but in jail." He also denied the AAP's charge that the CBI raids against Manish Sisodia are politically motivated.

"If they were so clean, they should have continued with the liquor policy. Why did they backtrack? Because they knew they were going to get exposed." said Gambhir.

Earlier in the day, the CBI raided the home of Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and 20 other locations in connection with the Delhi Excise Policy, escalating tensions between the government and the Aam Aadmi Party which alleged the agency was acting on orders "from above".

The searches at the AAP leader's home, the residence of IAS officer and former excise commissioner Arava Gopi Krishna and 19 other places came after the CBI registered an FIR for alleged irregularities in the formulation and execution of the Delhi Excise Policy brought out in November last year.

The searches covered seven states and union territories. The premises of two other public servants were also searched, the officials said.

As CBI teams fanned out across the country and AAP supporters gathered outside Sisodia's central Delhi home, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said there is no need to panic and the agency had been "asked from above" to harass them.

"Many obstacles will be created in our path in our mission. This is not the first raid on Sisodia, there were raids in the past too. There have also been raids on many of our ministers and me also but nothing came out of those and nothing will come out this time as well," he said at online briefing.