Atishi has claimed that the BJP offered her to switch over
The Delhi unit of BJP has sent a defamation notice to Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader and minister Atishi after she alleged that the BJP approached her with a request to switch over. Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva told the media today that they have sent the notice and demanded a public apology from Ms Atishi.
"Atishi failed to provide evidence of who approached her, how and when. The AAP is undergoing a crisis in Delhi, which is why they are making such baseless allegations out of frustration. But we will not let her get away with this," he said.
In a press meet yesterday, Ms Atishi said, "The BJP has approached me through someone very close. They have asked me to join the BJP and said this will save my political career. They have threatened that if I don't switch over, ED (Enforcement Directorate) will arrest me within a month."
She also claimed that she and three other AAP leaders -- Delhi minister Saurabh Bharadwaj, AAP MP Raghav Chadha and party MLA Durgesh Pathak -- may be arrested over the next couple of months.
She said the person who approached her on behalf of the BJP had said the ruling party had "made up its mind on crushing everyone in AAP".
"First, they put everyone in AAP's leadership in jail. Satyendra Jain, Manish Sisodia, Sanjay Singh and now Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal have been arrested. The BJP's plan is to arrest four more AAP leaders in the next two months. They will arrest me, Saurabh Bharadwaj, Durgesh Pathak and Raghav Chadha," she said. Sanjay Singh has been granted bail and will be released today.
Mr Sachdeva today dared the Delhi minister to submit her phone to an investigation agency to prove her claims.
The Delhi BJP's lawyer said the party has sent a defamation notice to Atishi to withdraw her statement, which he termed "false, defamatory, and concocted". If she cannot prove her claim, they will take more legal steps, the lawyer said.