AAP Calls ED Raids on Bharadwaj a Diversion Tactic
ED raids Bharadwaj to divert attention
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Tuesday labeled the Enforcement Directorate (ED) raids on its Delhi unit chief, Saurabh Bharadwaj, as a “diversionary tactic” to shift focus from questions about Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s degree. The ED searched 13 locations, including Bharadwaj’s residence, in a money laundering probe tied to alleged irregularities in health infrastructure projects worth Rs 5,590 crore during AAP’s tenure. AAP leaders, including Arvind Kejriwal, Manish Sisodia, and Atishi, denounced the raids as politically motivated and baseless.
KeJriwal, AAP’s national convenor, posted on X, “No party has been targeted like AAP. The Modi government wants to silence our voice against its wrong policies and corruption, but we will not be intimidated.” The probe stems from a June 2025 Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) FIR against Bharadwaj, former Health Minister Satyendar Jain, private contractors, and unidentified officials, following a complaint by BJP’s Vijender Gupta about delays and cost overruns in 24 hospital projects sanctioned in 2018–19.
Atishi, Leader of Opposition in the Delhi Assembly, claimed the raids were timed to deflect attention from nationwide discussions about Modi’s degree, especially after the Delhi High Court on Monday set aside a Central Information Commission order seeking its disclosure. “The case targets a period when Saurabh ji wasn’t even a minister. It’s clearly false,” she wrote on X, citing a similar case against Jain, which ended with a closure report after three years.
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Sisodia and AAP MP Sanjay Singh echoed this, calling the case “false and baseless” and accusing the BJP of using central agencies to suppress AAP’s dissent. Singh noted, “The whole country is asking about Modi’s degree, and these raids aim to distract.” The ED has not yet disclosed specific findings or assets seized, and the investigation continues amid heightened political tensions.
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