The BJP hit out at the Aam Aadmi Party led Delhi government over its liquor policy. Earlier on Saturday the Opposition party had taken to the streets of the national capital in protest. The remarks also come a day after Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena recommended a CBI inquiry on the basis of a report by the Chief Secretary that established violations of the Delhi Excise Act 2009.
“ABCD. ‘A’ for ‘advertising’ which they continue to do. ‘B’ for ‘bahanebaazi’ because at every turn they give excuses and deflect blame onto others. ‘C’ for ‘cover up of corruption’…and ‘D’ for ‘diversion, deviation and deflection’ that they use to avoid incidents and play the victim card. This is the ABCD model of Arvind Kejriwal,” began BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla.
The AAP, he added, had once wished to make Punjab and New Delhi liquor free.
“There’s a lot of advertisements being put out about ‘happiness classes’…but this is turning out to be a ‘happiness glasses’ model. This new liquor policy brought into Delhi by the Kejriwal government should be called that. The administration took up an initiative to bring intoxication into every ward and house…the reasons have now come to light,” he added.
Hours earlier, party workers had led a protest in Delhi against the new excise policy and called for Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia’s dismissal. Armed with placards and party flags, a large number of BJP workers had staged a protest outside his residence, raising slogans against the Delhi government and CM Kejriwal.
The protest took place amid heavy deployment of police personnel and para-military force to prevent any untoward incident. The police had placed barricades on the road to prevent the protesters from moving towards Sisodia’s residence. The BJP workers were detained as they trampled across the barricades and tried to cross it.LG Saxena had recommended a CBI inquiry on Friday, alleging that Sisodia was providing undue benefits to liquor licensees. It has also been alleged that AAP may have used this money during the Punjab elections. Following this, the Chief Secretary had been asked to submit a detailed report on the roles of officials involved in amendment and implementation of the policy.
The LG has also sought inter-alia, a comprehensive report of activities, dealings and scrutiny of files thereof and details of the role played by officers if any, thereto.
The Delhi Cabinet approved the Revised Excise Policy 2022-23 and the new proposals by the excise department and the group of ministers on May 5, but final approval for amendments and implementation on the ground has to be done by the Lieutenant Governor. However, the new policy has not been sent to LG for approval which has caused the extension of this controversial ongoing policy. The department is mandated to come out with a revised policy every financial year.
