New Delhi: AAP MLAs and volunteers coming to participate in the party’s protest outside the BJP headquarters here against the “cheating” in the Chandigarh mayoral polls are being stopped or detained, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal alleged on Friday.
Security has been stepped-up in Central Delhi with police barricading several roads leading to the Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Marg and deploying additional personnel in view of the Aam Aadmi Party’s demonstration as well as a protest by the BJP against “corruption” in the Kejriwal government.
The BJP will stage its protest near the AAP head office. The offices of both the parties are on the same road, a few hundred metres from each other.
“First votes were stolen in the Chandigarh mayoral elections. Now, people coming to protest peacefully against this are being stopped at various places across Delhi,” Kejriwal said in a post on X, ahead of the demonstration scheduled to begin at 11 am.
In another post, he said that “across Delhi, they are detaining elected MLAs, councillors and volunteers, who were coming to the party office”. “What is this going on?” he asked.
Officials said roads leading to the Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Marg have been closed since morning and barricades have been set up near the headquarters of the BJP and the AAP.
In a post on X, Delhi Minister and AAP leader Atishi said, “Heavy barricading all across Delhi. Buses full of AAP volunteers being detained. Hundreds of para-military forces outside the AAP office.”
“Why is the BJP so scared of a protest on the Chandigarh mayor elections?” she asked.
The BJP on Tuesday swept the Chandigarh mayoral polls, retaining all three posts of mayor, senior deputy mayor and deputy mayor, in a setback to the Congress-AAP alliance which has alleged tampering with ballot papers by the presiding officer.
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