Delhi Chief Minister Atishi criticized the withdrawal of Punjab Police security for Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor Arvind Kejriwal, accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah of endangering Kejriwal’s life. She also questioned the Election Commission’s inaction in addressing alleged attacks on Kejriwal.
“Shameful. On the instructions of Amit Shah ji, @DelhiPolice today forcibly removed @ArvindKejriwal ji’s Punjab Police security. And on the same day, Kejriwal ji was attacked by BJP goons in Hari Nagar. Does Modi-Shah want to play with Kejriwal’s life? How long will the Election Commission remain a mute spectator? Why is there silence on the repeated attacks on a leader of a national party?” Atishi posted on X (formerly Twitter) on Thursday.
Punjab Police Security Withdrawal
The Punjab DGP Gaurav Yadav confirmed the withdrawal of Punjab Police security provided to Kejriwal, citing instructions from the Election Commission of India and the Delhi Police.
“We keep on receiving reports regarding threats to Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann and Arvind Kejriwal and share them with the concerned agencies. After the instructions of the Election Commission of India and the Delhi Police, we have withdrawn the component of the Punjab Police deployed for the security of Arvind Kejriwal,” DGP Yadav said.
Alleged Attack on Kejriwal
Kejriwal alleged that opposition supporters entered his Hari Nagar rally and attacked his car.
“Today in Hari Nagar, the police allowed the opposition candidate’s men to enter my public meeting and then attacked my car. All this is happening on Amit Shah’s orders. Amit Shah has made the Delhi Police the personal army of the BJP,” Kejriwal wrote on X.
He further criticized the Election Commission for its silence on repeated incidents.
“Big questions are being raised on the Election Commission that the national president of a national party and its leaders are being constantly attacked, and the Election Commission is unable to take any effective action,” he added.
BJP Responds
BJP leader Parvesh Verma dismissed Kejriwal’s claims as theatrics.
“@ArvindKejriwal soon we will bring a drama ‘Hamla hua’ (attack happened), then posters will be printed – ‘Mujhe Kyon Mara?’. Elections are near, Bhai Saheb is writing the script,” Verma mocked on X.
This isn’t the first time Kejriwal has alleged attacks during his rallies. Last week, he accused BJP workers of targeting him during his campaign.
Delhi Assembly Elections
The Delhi Assembly elections will be held in a single phase on February 5, with vote counting scheduled for February 8. A total of 699 candidates are contesting for 70 assembly seats.
AAP, which secured sweeping victories in the 2015 and 2020 elections with 67 and 62 seats respectively, aims to continue its dominance. The BJP managed only 3 seats in 2015 and 8 in 2020, while the Congress has failed to win any seats in the past two elections.