After taking oath as new ministers of the Delhi Cabinet, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLAs Saurabh Bharadwaj and Atishi called arrest of former ministers Manish Sisodia and Satyendar Jain a “conspiracy” and said they will continue doing the works they had initiated.
Bharadwaj and Atishi were sworn in as ministers by Delhi Lt Governor V K Saxena on Thursday in the presence of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. Atishi will handle education, PWD, power and tourism departments, while Bharadwaj was allocated Health, urban development, water and industries.
“Our ideal and elder brothers Manish Sisodia and Satyender Jain were sent to jail by the Centre in a conspiracy. I will follow their footsteps to continue doing the good works they initiated,” Saurabh said, as quoted by PTI.
Atishi said that the two leaders are in jail in “false cases”.
“It’s a tough situation for our party and government. Our two senior leaders were sent to jail in false cases. We need to continue doing the good works initiated by both of them,” Atishi said.
Atishi and Bharadwaj will be attending the Delhi Assembly’s Budget Session commencing from March 17, party sources told the news agency.
Atishi has been an advisor of Sisodia when he held the education portfolio, and Bharadwaj has been an MLA of the AAP since 2013.
Following the resignations of former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and minister Satyendar Jain, both currently in Tihar jail in alleged corruption and money laundering cases, respectively, two Cabinet berths had fallen vacant. Delhi Cabinet must have a total of seven members, including the CM.
The CBI had arrested Sisodia on February 26 in connection with the alleged corruption in the formulation and implementation of the now-scrapped Delhi excise policy for 2021-22. He is currently in judicial custody till March 20. Meanwhile, Jain was arrested by the ED in a money laundering case on May 30, 2022. He is also in judicial custody in Tihar jail.