The ACB's notice specifically refers to a post on X by Kejriwal accusing the BJP of offering bribes to 16 AAP candidates to switch sides. The notice asks Kejriwal to confirm whether the tweet was made by him and provide detailed information on the alleged poaching attempts.
The Delhi Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) on Friday served a legal notice to AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal, seeking details and evidence regarding his allegations that the BJP attempted to bribe his party candidates ahead of the Delhi Assembly election results.
The legal notice comes just a day before the counting of votes is scheduled to take place for the Delhi Assembly elections held on February 5.
The notice, delivered at Kejriwal's 5, Ferozeshah Road residence, has intensified the political tensions between AAP and the BJP, with the former calling it a politically motivated move.
The ACB's notice specifically refers to a post on X by Kejriwal accusing the BJP of offering bribes to 16 AAP candidates to switch sides.
The notice asks Kejriwal to confirm whether the tweet was made by him and provide detailed information on the alleged poaching attempts.
It also seeks the names of the 16 candidates who received phone calls, the phone numbers of those who contacted them and any supporting evidence to substantiate these claims.
"Provide the evidence and proof to support the claim/allegations of the offer of a bribe levelled by you and your party members on various media/social media platforms," the ACB notice reads.
The notice also warns of potential legal action, asking Kejriwal to explain why those spreading such allegations should not be prosecuted for creating "panic and unrest" among the people of Delhi.
"Explain as to why an appropriate legal action should not be taken against the persons spreading such information on media/social media platforms, which is tantamount to creating panic and unrest situations amongst the people of Delhi," the notice reads.
Earlier, high drama unfolded as AAP strongly criticised the ACB's action, calling it an attempt to intimidate the party ahead of the election results.
AAP's legal cell chief Sanjeev Nasiar alleged that the ACB initially had no legal notice and was sitting outside Kejriwal's house without clarity on their purpose.
"They did not have any legal notice at first. After one-and-a-half hours, they served us with a notice. This drama is orchestrated by the LG office in collusion with the BJP. The officers were under pressure," Nasiar claimed.
AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh backed these allegations and filed a complaint with the ACB, stating that more than 16 AAP candidates had been approached by unidentified individuals attempting to lure them away from the party.
"I am a member of the PAC (Political Affairs Committee) of the Aam Aadmi Party and also the party's leader in Parliament. On February 6, around 2.30 pm when I was present in Parliament, I personally received information from my colleagues that the current MLAs and party candidates are being contacted by the leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party and are being asked to join the BJP by offering bribes worth crores of rupees and ministerial posts," Singh said in his complaint.
Singh further asked for appropriate action on his complaint.
The BJP, however, dismissed AAP's accusations, labelling them as baseless and an attempt to deflect attention from the party's internal troubles.
The controversy erupted after Delhi BJP general secretary Vishnu Mittal submitted a representation to Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena, urging action against AAP for allegedly spreading misinformation about poaching attempts.
Following this, Saxena directed the ACB to conduct an inquiry, leading to the issuance of the notice to Kejriwal.
(With PTI inputs)