During a padyatra in Delhi’s Greater Kailash area, former Chief Minister of Delhi and AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal was attacked by a man identified as Ashok Jha, a bus marshal employed at Delhi Transport Corporation’s Khanpur Depot.
Jha allegedly threw a liquid, suspected to be spirit, on Kejriwal with an intent to set him on fire, according to Delhi minister Saurabh Bharadwaj. The attacker was quickly overpowered by Kejriwal’s security team and detained by the police.
The AAP sharply criticized Delhi’s law and order situation, questioning the BJP-led central government’s ability to ensure safety in the capital.
The party claimed, “If a former CM is not safe in Delhi, where will the common man go?” Bharadwaj further alleged that the assailant had links to the BJP. This incident follows another attack on Kejriwal during a rally in October, which AAP also blamed on the BJP.
Meanwhile, Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva dismissed the incident as a “political drama” orchestrated by AAP ahead of the Delhi Assembly elections.
Sachdeva accused Kejriwal of staging such events to gain sympathy, claiming that the liquid thrown was merely water and that the attacker was intoxicated and associated with AAP.
BJP MP Kamaljeet Sehrawat attributed the incident to public frustration over issues like broken streets, overflowing drains, and pollution but condemned the method of expressing grievances.
This is not the first attack Kejriwal has faced. Similar incidents occurred in 2016, when ink was thrown at him in Bikaner, Rajasthan, and during his early political career.
With the Delhi elections approaching, AAP has intensified its voter engagement efforts through Padyatras, focusing on grassroot interactions.
Kejriwal recently announced the upcoming registration for the ‘Mukhyamantri Mahila Samman Yojana,’ promising Rs 1,000 monthly honorarium for women.
He also criticized the BJP for failing to deliver on essential services like electricity, healthcare, and education, despite governing 22 states.
The attack has highlighted the escalating political tensions between AAP and BJP, with both parties leveraging the incident to bolster their respective narratives in the run-up to the elections.
Security scare during Kejriwal rally, man detained for throwing liquid on former CM
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