'No prosecution sanction issued against Kejriwal,' says AAP's Saurabh Bhardwaj

New Delhi [India], December 21 (ANI): Delhi Health Minister Saurabh Bhardwaj on Saturday expressed shock over the reports of former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal set to be prosecuted in the excise policy case, asserting that there was no prosecution sanction issued in this regard.
The minister informed that a prosecution sanction was required to prosecute a Chief Minister or a minister.
"I am shocked...don't they have the basic knowledge that prosecution sanction is required to prosecute a chief minister or a minister? They are saying that today they have given sanction to prosecute (Arvind Kejriwal), what was the BJP doing for the last two years? If they did not have permission to prosecute (Arvind Kejriwal), what were they doing? We have information that there is no prosecution sanction today also. This is part of a conspiracy being pushed for political reasons," Bhardwaj told ANI.
Meanwhile, AAP MP Sanjay Singh on Saturday rejected the reports of former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal set to be prosecuted by the ED in connection with the excise policy case, saying that Delhi Lieutenant Governor (LG) VK Saxena should make the letter public.
"This fake news has been circulating since the morning. I don't know what is the source of this information. If Delhi LG has given any sanction, then he should make it public. Where is that letter of the sanction? If the ED (Enforcement Directorate) has been given the nod to prosecute (Kejriwal), the LG should show the letter. It is important to have evidence before running such baseless news. Delhi LG has given no such letter," Singh told ANI.
This comes after Delhi Lieutenant Governor (LG) VK Saxena reportedly granted the Enforcement Directorate (ED) permission to prosecute AAP Chief and former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in the excise policy case.
Earlier, Delhi Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President Virendraa Sachdeva on Saturday accused former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal of being the "kingpin" of Delhi's liquor scam. Sachdeva asserted that Kejriwal would be punished for his alleged involvement in the excise policy case.
"It is clear that Arvind Kejriwal is the 'kingpin' of the Delhi Excise Policy scam and he has looted Delhi. We have been saying this since the first day that once you are out on bail, it is not evidence of your innocence. As the investigation progresses, Arvind Kejriwal is the culprit in this and will be punished," Sachdeva told ANI.
On December 5, the Enforcement Directorate sought permission to sanction Kejriwal's prosecution. This development follows months of investigations into the Delhi government's excise policy, which has been at the centre of controversy and allegations of corruption.
Meanwhile, the Delhi High Court on Friday granted the ED additional time to file its reply to the petition filed by Kejriwal and former Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia. The petition challenges the trial court's decision to take cognizance of the chargesheets in the Delhi Excise Liquor Policy case.
The matter has been scheduled for hearing on February 5 by the bench of Justice Manoj Kumar Ohri. (ANI)