"This is an attempt to intimidate me": AAP's Durgesh Pathak after CBI raid in FCRA case

New Delhi [India], April 18 (ANI): Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Durgesh Pathak on Thursday alleged that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) raid at his residence was an attempt to intimidate him, especially following his recent appointment as co-incharge for Gujarat. He claimed that the action was part of a broader effort to target AAP leaders and derail the party's growing momentum.
A CBI team conducted a search at Pathak's residence early Thursday morning in connection with a case related to alleged violations of the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA), 2010.
Pathak said that the CBI team spent 3-4 hours at his modest two-room home, thoroughly inspecting every corner. However, no incriminating material was reportedly found.
"Early this morning, a CBI team arrived at my place. For 3-4 hours, they searched my two-room residence, scanning every nook and corner. However, they didn't find anything. They didn't tell me the reason for this raid, only showed a search warrant, and I fully cooperated," Pathak told reporters.
"This may be an attempt to intimidate me, especially after my appointment in Gujarat. This seems like a targeted effort to scare AAP leaders and stop our momentum," he added.
Pathak linked the raid to AAP's emergence as a political alternative in Gujarat, pointing out that the party had won five seats in the last Assembly elections. "After that, they arrested Arvind Kejriwal, Manish Sisodia, Satyendra Jain, and Sanjay Singh," he said.
Following the raid, Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva launched a scathing attack on Pathak, accusing him of misappropriating party funds. He alleged that donations collected in Delhi were siphoned off to fund AAP's campaign in Goa.
"The money that was collected in Delhi went to the Goa elections. Durgesh Pathak stole the donation money from his own party. This party has committed ten types of theft and scams, but the fundraisers who eat up the donations of their own party have turned out to be more clever, and this investigation is going on continuously right now. Everyone knows that this party is the most corrupt party in India. It only wants to steal, take commission and bribe," Sachdeva claimed.
The CBI is probing AAP leaders Durgesh Pathak and Kapil Bhardwaj for alleged violations of the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act. The case was registered against AAP and some of its office bearers for allegedly violating the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA), 2010, as amended in 2020.
According to the FIR, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) granted permission for a formal CBI investigation following inputs from the Enforcement Directorate (ED). The ED had launched an investigation under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and shared its findings with the MHA. (ANI)