The Aryavarth Express
Agency (New Delhi): Delhi Chief Minister and AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal, whose interim bail ends on June 1, expressed no “tension or anxiety” about potentially returning to Tihar Jail. He views incarceration as part of his “struggle” to save the country.
Kejriwal, arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a money laundering case linked to the alleged excise policy scam, was granted interim bail by the Supreme Court on May 10 to campaign for the ongoing Lok Sabha polls.
In an interview with PTI Videos, Kejriwal mentioned reading the ‘Gita’ twice during his nearly one-month stay in Tihar Jail before his interim bail, claiming it transformed his perspective. He found strength in the stories of freedom fighters who endured long imprisonments without hope, while he consoled himself with the thought of being released within months.
“I have no tension or anxiety. I will go back if I have to… I consider it as part of my struggle to save the country,” Kejriwal stated when asked about the possibility of returning to Tihar.
Reflecting on his previous jail time, Kejriwal mentioned reading several books, including the ‘Gita’, the ‘Ramayana’, and books on India’s political history. He also revealed being under constant CCTV surveillance, monitored by 13 jail officials and the PMO, making life in jail extremely difficult.
“Just imagine being watched for every movement of yours for 24 hours. It will make life difficult. There was no moment for me to be relaxed,” he said. He further claimed that prison guards informed him about officials’ concerns over whether he was weeping or depressed.
Discussing electoral bonds, Kejriwal vowed that if the INDIA bloc comes to power, they would investigate what he called the “biggest scam” in independent India. He accused the BJP of receiving donations in exchange for favors, describing it as quid pro quo.
“The prime minister, three days before the Punjab Assembly polls in February 2022, said in a rally at Abohar that Kejriwal wants to break the country to form Khalistan and become its prime minister. Is it believable?” he questioned, laughing off such allegations as well as those related to the liquor scam.
Kejriwal asserted that AAP’s ideology would endure even if he were to be executed. “I say hang Kejriwal if you think the Aam Aadmi Party will be finished by hanging (him). AAP is not a party, it’s a thought. One Kejriwal dies, hundreds more will be born,” he declared.
Regarding AAP being named as an accused in the excise policy scam being probed by the ED, Kejriwal predicted that all opposition parties would eventually be accused of various cases and their accounts frozen. He emphasized the importance of unity among all parties to save the country, stating that the nation must come first over individual parties.
When questioned about AAP’s alliance with Congress for the Lok Sabha polls in Delhi, Kejriwal affirmed that his party would do anything necessary to save the country.