New Delhi: Arrested Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader and former Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia is an “honest” man who did “commendable” work in the education sector but may have fallen victim to a corrupt system, according to veteran Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Shanta Kumar.
In a message released on Facebook Tuesday as well in a conversation with ThePrint, former Himachal Pradesh chief minister Kumar took a line that differed considerably from that of the party that he helped found.
After the CBI arrested Sisodia this Sunday over alleged corruption in the national capital’s liquor policy for 2020-21, the BJP has been clamouring for the resignation of AAP national convenor and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.
Kumar, however, has pointed out that the CBI had searched Sisodia’s house and bank lockers but “did not find anything”. He also situated the controversy within the broader framework of black money and corruption in electoral politics.
“Corruption runs so deep today that even a train that starts out from a station of virtue reaches the destination of vice,” the octogenarian meditated in the post, which was written in Hindi.
When asked about his views, Kumar told ThePrint that he held the “system” more accountable for corruption than individual leaders like Sisodia.
“Due to the efforts of Sisodia (also a former education minister), Delhi’s government schools became very good — on par with private schools. He has done tremendous work in the education sector,” he said.
“The root cause of the liquor allegation is not his personal integrity, but systemic corruption in the election system. All parties use black money to fight elections— so how do we expect any honest system to survive?”
Known for his candour, Kumar has diverged from the BJP’s stance on other occasions too. Last August, for instance, he had questioned the Gujarat government’s decision to release the rape and murder convicts in the Bilkis Bano case. “I bow my head in shame,” he had said then.
Also read: Don’t give clean chit to Sisodia but see the timing. A national scandal is being covered
‘Personally honest, may have favoured traders’
In his Facebook message, Kumar seemed to rue the current situation of the AAP, which was born of the “anti-corruption movement” from over decade ago
“The Aam Aadmi Party formed the (Delhi) government by defeating the BJP badly under the nose of the central government in Delhi. Worked for five years, formed the government again. This was a great achievement of the party, born from the anti-corruption movement 11 years ago. Mr Manish Sisodia became famous as the deputy chief minister with a clean image but today he is in jail,” he wrote.
Shanta Kumar acknowledged that it was unlikely that the CBI would put Sisodia in jail “without any crime”, but he argued that the “system” is such that even the honest become tainted.
“There are allegations and counter-allegations from both sides,” he wrote. “A fact that is deeply worth considering is that Mr. Sisodia’s house was thoroughly searched. His bank lockers were all searched but CBI did not find anything anywhere.”
He added: “Overall, the charge against (Sisodia) is that he made such a liquor policy which benefited traders. This also leads to a conclusion that Mr Sisodia is completely honest personally, but he may have done all this to collect money for the party and elections. In my opinion, this is true. And if it is true, then the country will have to take some new decisions very seriously.”
‘Every party collects money’
In the run-up to the 2024 general elections, when the BJP is going all out to paint the AAP as corrupt, Kumar hinted that no political party can claim to be clean.
“After 75 years of independence, India has reached a place where our democracy starts with black money and lies. Crores of billions of rupees spent on elections are only black money. Parties take money from big businessmen. Those merchants do not give charity. With the help of the government, they make their money through corruption,” he wrote.
“This is how India’s democracy starts with black money and after winning the elections, all the representatives present a false account of election expenditure to the Election Commission. How can everything be good in a country whose democracy starts with black money and lies?”
In a conversation with ThePrint, Kumar emphasised that the use of black money cuts across party lines.
“The root cause of corruption is black money. Every month there is some election or the other, for which parties collect money or take undue advantage of businessmen. Every party collects money — it’s not a question of AAP or BJP. Some parties have more money and others have less,” he said.
PM’s ‘majboori‘?
Kumar told ThePrint that he wondered what “majboori” (compulsion) Prime Minister Narendra Modi had to not “clean the system”.
“If you want honest politics to survive, you have to first streamline the election system and then black money. When a party’s focus will be to fight elections, which are happening every month, how will development take place? Modi has knowledge of everything. He has the will, every party fears him, but I don’t know what is his majboori to not clean the system “
Kumar’s comments come in the wake of the BJP’s high-voltage campaign calling for the resignation of Delhi CM Kejriwal. Other than street protests, the party has held six press conferences in just two days, branding the AAP and Kejriwal as corrupt.
The AAP’s USP has been is its hard stance against corruption. Despite repeated allegations around the so-called ‘liquor scam’ the party seems to have sustained its popularity in Delhi. Last December, AAP defeated the BJP and won the municipal corporation elections in the city for the first time. The AAP also formed a government in Punjab last March.
The AAP has claimed that the allegations against Sisodia are false, that the BJP is “afraid” of Kejriwal’s popularity and is therefore trying intimidation tactics.
(Edited by Asavari Singh)
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