AAP says Jaitley influenced probe, DDCA to sue Kejriwal
New Delhi, Dec 31: The battle between the AAP and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley got bigger on Wednesday, with the party making fresh allegations against the BJP leader that he used his clout to close a corruption case in the Delhi and District Cricket Cricket Association.
However, AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal, who has already been sued by Jaitley for defaming him over the alleged irregularities in the DDCA, is likely to face another lawsuit for accusing its official of seeking sex for selecting players.
Reacting to Kejriwal’s allegation, DDCA acting president Chetan Chouhan said “false” charges were being levelled against the state cricket association and it was forced to take legal recourse against those spreading such misinformation.
In an interview to NDTV on Tuesday, Kejriwal, whose government has set up a Commission of Inquiry into the alleged irregularities in the DDCA, said sexual favours were sought for selecting players.
On Wednesday, the AAP released two letters purportedly written by Jaitley to the then Delhi Police chief and special commissioner asking them to close the corruption case pertaining to a bank’s cricket club saying the “DDCA has done no wrong”.
The purported letter by Jaitley to then police commissioner B.K. Gupta mentions that how the controversy of converting Cricket Club of the Syndicate Bank being converted into a private club did not arise.
Jaitley said the bank “changed its position” to give ownership of the club to Bhola Shanker, who was managing the club, and who also agreed to it.
“The DDCA is willing to give the club back to be managed by the bank itself. But nobody seems to be showing active interest from the bank’s side,” said the letter dated October 27, 2011.
However, some people, who are not employees of the bank or in any way connected with the bank or the club, have been pursuing some complaints in the matter.
“I would request you to look into the matter and ensure that the matter is dealt with fairly and closed since the DDCA has done no wrong,” the letter said.
In another letter in May 2012 to Narayan, Jaitley made the same request, saying “certain office bearers of the DDCA are feeling harassed by the repeated questioning in this regard”.
AAP leader Ashutosh said: “I want to ask Jaitley that is it not an offence in the eyes of the law to interfere in a probe and ask to close case?”
“Jaitley says he was a non-executive president of the DDCA but his efforts to cover up the matter make it clear that he was in the know of everything happening in the DDCA.”
The Bharatiya Janata Party rubbished the charges against Jaitley.
“The issues being raised by the Aam Aadmi Party are merely rhetoric and lack substance,” BJP national secretary Sidharth Nath Singh told reporters at a press conference here.
“It was a routine letter,” he added.
Delhi’s AAP government has set up a Commission of Inquiry in the alleged corruption in the DDCA which headed by Jaitley between the 1999 and 2013.
A report by the Delhi government alleged financial bungling in the cricket association. Former cricketer Kirti Azad has made similar allegations against it.
The BJP’s defence is that Jaitley’s name does not figure in the report prepared by the Delhi government. (IANS)