Ink attack: AAP calls in BJP conspiracy, Cong in poor taste

New Delhi: The ink attack at Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal today evoked strong reactions with the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) calling it a “BJP conspiracy” and Congress dubbing it an incident in “poor taste”.

BJP, which also condemned the incident, however, appeared trashing the conspiracy charge saying there is a need to go to bottom of it to understand and expose whether it was an individual effort or someone was behind it.

Ink was thrown at Kejriwal by a young woman, who appeared to be in her 20s, when the Chief Minister was addressing a ‘thanksgiving’ rally following “success” of his government’s odd-even experiment.

The incident prompted angry reaction from AAP government with Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia slamming the Delhi Police by calling the incident a major security lapse and wondered whether it was “sitting in readiness to stage an attack on Kejriwal”.

“I can see a BJP conspiracy. They want to take advantage of such a situation and attack Kejriwal and the entire Cabinet. They may also kill people because they cannot stand the success of the odd-even scheme and AAP’s popularity among the masses. Police is a part of the conspiracy,” he told reporters.

While condemning the incident, BJP’s spokesperson Nalin Kohli said, “We also oppose Kejriwal and its politics completely but certainly these kind of incidents should not happen.”

Kohli said that everyone has the right to say whatever they want but such incidents like throwing ink, ‘chappal’ and slapping someone have no place in a civilised society.

“They should get to the bottom of it to understand and expose whether it is individual effort or someone was behind it,” he said.

Reacting to the development, AICC communication department chairman Randeep Surjewala said, “Attack on Delhi CM is in poor taste and reprehensible. Such conduct is unknown to Indian democratic tradition.”

Delhi BJP President Satish Upadhyay said that the party does not approve of such incident “but on the other hand we feel that the incident reflects the growing frustration amongst people towards the Kejriwal regime.”

“Today’s Chhatrasal Stadium incident could well be a case of activist’s frustration or stage managed by Kejriwal himself to play his usual victim card,” he said in a statement.

“People of Delhi are shocked to see the loot of public money, rampant corruption and above all protection cover to corrupt leaders and officials of Sheila Dikshit regime being allowed by the Kejriwal Government,” he said.

Former AAP leader Yogendra Yadav, who was expelled from the party, also condemned the incident.

“Ink attack on Delhi CM is condemnable. Whatever the reasons, such an act cannot be justified,” Yadav tweeted.

The incident happened around 4.50 PM when Kejriwal was five minutes into his address at the rally organised by the city government to thank people of Delhi for making the pilot road-rationing scheme a “grand success”.
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BJP leader and Leader of Opposition in Delhi Vidhan Sabha Vijender Gupta “condemned” the ink throwing act on Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal adding that such “gimmicks” must be unanimously discouraged without unnecessary politics.

The swiftness with which Deputy CM Manish Sisodia started blaming the BJP raises suspicion whether the act was staged by the AAP itself to attract eyeballs and somehow be in news, he said.