CBI seized files on cabinet decisions: Kejriwal; agency denies

The office of Kejriwal’s Principal Secretary Rajendra Kumar was raided by CBI yesterday in a corruption case triggering a fresh face-off between the AAP and Centre and a vicious political slugfest in which the AAP chief lashed out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Escalating their attack on the Centre, particularly against Mr Jaitley, AAP leaders are now demanding his resignation to ensure a free and fair probe into allegations of corruption in Delhi’s cricket body.

He said he had always told Kejriwal to have people with strong character around him.

The CBI denied allegations that the raiding party touched documents in Kejriwal’s office.

“Rajendra Kumar had met Kejriwal on Tuesday night after he was questioned by CBI officials”. CBI spokesman Devpreet Singh said searches were conducted with warrants, and that Kejriwal’s office was not searched.

“The search cum seizure memo containing details of all seized items will be produced before the competent Court. They would have seized it. But after my media briefing, they left it”, he said.

I wonder why the CBI had allegedly seized “file movement register of November- December” and “three files of transport department”. CBI sources claimed that Kumar has been providing information which was not given by him yesterday. But my question is over the timing of this entire incident. “The CBI neither prevented nor disallowed any person in their movement to the various offices in the Delhi Secretariat, including the CM’s office, except the office chamber of his Secretary, Rajendra Kumar and that of his PA”, she said.

Kumar has been booked under 120-B of IPC (criminal conspiracy), and 13(2), 13(1)(d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act (Criminal conspiracy, criminal misconduct etc) for allegedly favouring a private company in five contracts worth Rs 9.5 crore during 2007-14. “They raided the CMO on directions from the Centre and took files not related to its probe”.

He also attacked Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, asking why he was scared of a probe into the alleged irregularities at the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA). “Action should have been taken the moment the problem was discovered”, he said.