'If Manish Sisodia, Satyendar Jain Join BJP Today...': Arvind Kejriwal Makes Big Statement

Manish Sisodia was arrested by the CBI on Sunday over alleged corruption in the Delhi liquor policy, while Satyendar Jain is in Tihar Jail in a money laundering case.

New Delhi: Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) supremo Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday (March 1, 2023) alleged that his leaders Manish Sisodia and Satyendar Jain have been arrested just to "sabotage the good work being done" in the capital's education and health sectors. He also claimed that they would walk out of jail if they join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) today. Speaking a day after Jain and Sisodia resigned from the Delhi Cabinet, Kejriwal said that the two AAP leaders brought laurels to the country and that the entire nation was proud of their achievements.

"The AAP is a storm. We will be unstoppable now and our time has come," Kejriwal said after a meeting with party MLAs and councillors.

Manish Sisodia was arrested by the CBI on Sunday over alleged corruption in the now-scrapped Delhi liquor policy, while Satyendar Jain is in Tihar Jail in a money laundering case.

The two former Delhi ministers led what the AAP describes as the successful transformation of the national capital's education and health services.

Arvind Kejriwal attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and said that he got "two of our best ministers -- Satyendar Jain our health minister and Manish Sisodia, who was our education minister -- arrested".

"Jain gave the model of mohalla clinics in primary healthcare to the entire world. Sisodia transformed government schools and even the former first lady of the US came to witness them (in February 2020)," he said.

The AAP chief claimed that the people who brought laurels for the country were "put behind bars by Prime Minister Narendra Modi just to stop the good work being done here. There is no scam in excise policy... It is just an excuse".

He also said that they have no dearth of talent and that the authorities can arrest as many ministers as they want, the party will bring out more leaders.

"If Sisodia and Jain join BJP today, they will walk out of jails and all cases will end. Their objective is to send CBI and ED behind opposition leaders and trouble them," he said.

हमारे मंत्रियों को झूठे केस में गिरफ़्तार करके ये दिल्ली के काम रोकना चाहते हैं। मैं दिल्ली वालों को भरोसा दिलाना चाहता हूँ कि दिल्ली के काम बिल्कुल नहीं रुकेंगे। https://t.co/0jLkjvHBIe

— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) March 1, 2023

Asked whether there will be a deputy chief minister following Sisodia's resignation, Kejriwal said, "If the need arises, we shall see."

About the party's strategy in the days ahead, he said they will carry out a door-to-door campaign and tell them that "there was a time when (former Prime Minister) Indira Gandhi had gone to the extreme, today PM Modi is going extreme".

"When the extreme happens, nature takes its course. The Almighty uses His force. This is not right (what is happening). People are watching and they are angry," he said while reiterating that not even a single penny was found in the raids conducted at Sisodia's or his relatives' residences.

Kejriwal has forwarded the names of AAP MLAs Atishi and Saurabh Bhardwaj to the Lieutenant Governor for their appointment to the Cabinet.