NEW DELHI: Aam Aadmi Party convenor Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday slammed Bharatiya Janata Party after the Enforcement Directorate conducted raid at the residence of AAP Rajya Sabha MP Ashok Mittal.In a social media post on X, Kejriwal termed the ED action as Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “preparations for the elections in Punjab.””Modi Ji has begun preparations for the elections in Punjab. But the people of Punjab will not tolerate this. They will give the BJP a sound thrashing in response,” Kejriwal said.Central probing agency’s action came just days after the AAP appointed Mittal as its deputy leader in the Rajya Sabha, replacing Raghav Chadha.The development follows a formal move by the AAP to restructure its leadership in the Upper House.The party had written to the Rajya Sabha Secretariat seeking the removal of Raghav Chadha as deputy leader and requested that he no longer be allotted speaking time from the party’s quota.Reacting to the searches, Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann posted on his X account: “BJP begins preparations for Punjab elections… ED raids at the home and university of AAP Rajya Sabha MP Ashok Mittal..typical Modi style..”Ashok Kumar Mittal is the founder of Lovely Professional University in Punjab.An academic-turned-politician, he entered active politics in 2022 and was elected to the Rajya Sabha the same year. He has since served on several parliamentary committees, including defence and finance, and has participated in international parliamentary delegations.The AAP currently has 10 MPs in the Rajya Sabha, including seven from Punjab and three from Delhi.
