Shazia Ilmi and Ashutosh, booked for rioting and damaging public property
New Delhi:The political atmosphere in the national capital remained somewhat charged with the police registering FIRs against some members of the top leadership of the Aam Aadmi Party in the wake of Wednesday’s violence at the BJP party headquarters.
Top AAP leaders, including Shazia Ilmi and Ashutosh, were booked for rioting and damaging public property during clashes with BJP workers. They were questioned by the Delhi police, which termed the AAP’s protest as completely illegal as no prior permission was sought by the party. Later, a Delhi court granted bail to all 14 AAP workers arrested for pelting stones outside the BJP office.
Signalling trouble for the AAP, the Delhi chief electoral officer’s office on Thursday served a notice to the Kejriwal-led party for allegedly violating the model code of conduct that came into effect on March 5.
The notice came in the wake of the BJP taking up the matter with the Election Commission seeking stern action against the AAP and its leaders, including de-recognition of the AAP.
The BJP also alleged that some foreign forces were behind such violent incidents to create instability in the country and demanded a probe. The BJP launched an all-out attack on the AAP for “vitiating” the atmosphere ahead of Lok Sabha elections and indulging in propaganda at the “behest” of the Congress.
Delhi Lieutenant-Governor Najeeb Jung, who met Union home minister Sushilkumar Shinde, is understood to have discussed the clashes between AAP and BJP workers. Sensing that the “mobocracy” could cost AAP its middle-class vote bank (which has begun shifting towards the BJP) in Delhi, party supremo Arvind Kejriwal apologised for the violence.
In its notice to the AAP for alleged violation of the model code of conduct, New Delhi’s deputy commissioner and district election officer Ameya Abhyankar asked the party to explain by Friday why action should not be initiated against it for holding a protest without permission from poll officials and in violation of the code of conduct.
