India: Arvind Kejriwal's AAP govt secures trust vote in Delhi assembly with backing of 54 MLAs

The Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government succeeded in passing a trust vote during the Budget session in the Delhi Assembly on Saturday. Out of the 62 AAP MLAs, 54 were present for the voting. Kejriwal affirmed that there were no defections within the AAP, clarifying that two MLAs were in jail, while others were either unwell or out of town.

Simultaneously, Arvind Kejriwal appeared before a Delhi court via video conferencing in response to five earlier summons issued by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) regarding the liquor policy case on Saturday (Feb 17). The court, stressing onKejriwal's legal obligation to comply, adjourned the hearing to March 16.

ED's allegations and Kejriwal's defiance

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The ED has accused the Delhi chief minister of deliberately evading summons and providing "lame excuses," asserting that his non-compliance sets a negative precedent for the public.

Kejriwal's motion for a trust vote coincides with the ED's upcoming sixth summonon February 19, amidst AAP's persistent claims of illegal summonsand alleged arrest threats.

Ahead of the confidence vote, Kejriwal alleged BJP's attempts to coerce AAP MLAs into defection, citing instances where BJP members purportedly approached MLAs with arrest threats against the chief minister and offers of monetary inducement to switch parties.

Kejriwal aims to use the trust vote to put forth AAP's unity and deter defections. With AAP having 62 MLAs in the 70-member Assembly and BJP eight, Kejriwal seeks to solidify his party's position amidst growing political tensions.

During his speech in the legislative assembly, the Chief Minister of Delhi highlighted that the AAP stands as the primary opposition to the BJP, hence facing criticism from various quarters.

“The way they (BJP) have attacked the AAP and arrested our ministers; people across the country are aware of this. They think that people are fool, but they are not. Now discussions are being held in parks and people are asking 'does PM Modi want to crush Arvind Kejriwal'? Even children are asking this question because they have arrested so many of our ministers,” Arvind Kejriwal said.

He further accused the BJP of impeding the functioning of his administration by seizing authority over the services department and the bureaucracy.

"They claim to be Ram bhakt but they stopped medicines for the poor people in our hospitals. Did Lord Ram ask for stopping medicines for the poor people?" PTI quoted Kejriwal as saying.

Implications of the liquor policy case

The ongoing legal battle involving allegations of corruption in the liquor policy implicates both the AAP and the BJP.

The ED alleges kickbacks and money laundering, while theBJP claims AAP used illicit funds for political campaigns. This hasfurther escalatedtensions between the two parties.

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(With inputs from agencies)