Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal walked out of Tihar jail on Friday after spending 50 days behind bars following the Supreme Court’s order granting him interim bail in a money-laundering case related to the now-repealed Delhi excise policy.
Kejriwal was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on March 21 in connection with the alleged liquor policy scam. He received a warm welcome from Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) workers and supporters as he walked out of prison.
Kejriwal’s wife Sunita Kejriwal, Punjab Chief Minister and AAP leader Bhagwant Mann, party leaders Atishi and Saurabh Bhardwaj, and AAP general secretary Sandeep Pathak accompanied Kejriwal when he was released.
Beginning with slogans of ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’, ‘Vande Mataram’ and ‘Inquilab Zindabad’, the Delhi chief minister said, “I am fighting against dictatorship with all my might, but 140 crore people (of the country) will have to come together to fight against it.”
Addressing party workers, the AAP national convenor said, “I am feeling great to be with you. I had told you that I would come out soon… First of all, I want to pay obeisance to Lord Hanuman. I am among you because of the blessings of Lord Hanuman.”
The Delhi chief minister further said, “Tomorrow at 11 am, we will go to the Hanuman Temple at Connaught Place and at 1 pm, we will address a press conference at the party office.”
“I want to thank you all. Crores of people of the country sent their blessings to me. I want to thank the Supreme Court because of which I am here,” he added.
Reacting to the CM’s release, senior AAP leader Gopal Rai said, “…Dictatorship will come to an end in this Lok Sabha election..”
Another AAP MP, Swati Maliwal, said, “On behalf of the people of the country, I wholeheartedly thank the Supreme Court. Arvind Kejriwal ji did amazing work in Delhi and Punjab. Today when he has been released from jail, there is a wave of happiness and hope in the entire country which will definitely translate into votes. We will win with a huge margin.”
