It is diversionary tactic as questions being asked about PM's degree: AAP on ED raids against Bharadwaj

New Delhi, Aug 26 (PTI) The Aam Aadmi Party on Tuesday claimed that the Enforcement Directorate raids against Saurabh Bharadwaj were an attempt to divert attention from questions being raised about Prime Minister Narendra Modi's degree and asserted that the case against the party's Delhi unit chief was "false".

AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal said his party would not be intimidated by this "misuse" of central investigation agencies by the Modi government.

The Enforcement Directorate carried out searches on the premises of former minister Bharadwaj and some private contractors as part of a money laundering probe linked to an alleged scam in health infrastructure projects during the previous AAP government in Delhi, official sources said.

At least 13 locations in the National Capital Region are being searched under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), they said.

AAP leaders claimed Bharadwaj was not even a minister when the decisions on hospital construction were taken.

No party has been targeted the way the AAP is being targeted today, Kejriwal said in a post on X.

"AAP is being targeted because it has been the strongest voice against the Modi government's wrong policies and corrupt practices. The Modi government wants to silence our voice, but that will never happen," the former chief minister said.

"AAP will not be intimidated by these raids of the BJP," he added.

Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann linked the raid to the ongoing national debate on PM Narendra Modi’s academic credentials.

“The ED raid on Saurabh Bharadwaj on Tuesday was carried out because, since Monday, the entire country has been discussing whether Modi ji’s degree is fake. This raid was staged to divert attention.

"Remember, Satyendar Jain was kept in jail for three years, and later CBI and ED filed closure reports in court. This proves that all cases against AAP leaders are fabricated and false,” he said in a post on X in Punjabi.

Senior AAP leader Manish Sisodia claimed that the case against Bharadwaj is "false".

"The raids are a diversionary tactic. The case pertains to the time when Bharadwaj was not holding any ministerial post. The case is fake," he said in a statement issued by the AAP.

The ED investigation against Bharadwaj (45) stems from an FIR registered by Delhi's Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) in June.

The ACB booked Bharadwaj, his party colleague and ex-health minister Satyendar Jain, private contractors and unknown government officials for alleged corruption in health infrastructure projects by the AAP government led by chief minister Arvind Kejriwal.

Leader of Opposition in the Delhi Assembly Atishi asserted that all cases against AAP leaders are "politically motivated".

In a press conference, she questioned why Delhi University was shying away from publicly displaying the Prime Minister’s academic record.

“What kind of university is this that does not take pride in the fact that the country’s Prime Minister studied there? The BJP itself says PM Modi is the world’s most successful leader, yet his own university is not proud to claim him.

"I believe there is no university in the world that would not be proud to say its former student is the Prime Minister of the country,” she said.

Citing examples, she said Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta was honoured by the University of Delhi when she took office.

"When I became Chief Minister, St. Stephen’s College, where I studied, invited me and felicitated me. Oxford University, my alma mater, published the newsletter that one of their alumnus had become the chief minister of Delhi.

"But the University of Delhi wants to hide that PM Modi was their student. The whole country was talking about this, and to divert attention, the fake ED raid at Saurabh Bharadwaj’s home was ordered,” she alleged.

Atishi stressed that the case cited by the ED has no merit. “This raid is completely fake because at the time when the hospital construction decisions were taken, Saurabh Bharadwaj was not even a minister. He became a minister two years later.

"This is like raiding PM Modi's house over the Colgate scam or the 2G scam. Or raiding Rekha Gupta for scams like Commonwealth Games or CNG fitness, which predates the Congress era,” she said.

AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh echoed similar views.

"Why are the raids being conducted today? The whole country is asking about Modi ji's degree and Bharadwaj is being targeted to divert attention. Efforts have been made to make AAP leaders bow down. This case is false and baseless," he said.

The Delhi High Court on Monday set aside a Central Information Commission order directing disclosure of details related to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's bachelor's degree, saying that only because he was holding a public office does not mean all his "personal information" should be disclosed publicly. PTI SLB SLB RT RT